Home, Part 2: The Holidays
by StangeInterests32
Summary: The VKs just started getting used to the idea of their new families, but that was the easy part. Now, they'll discover how different things are in Auradon versus the Isle as they navigate something they weren't prepared for: Family Holidays. But soon they'll find out there's a reason that these holidays are centered around family and friends instead of having to go it alone.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Okay, so here it is, the sequel to "Home". Now I didn't want to do the slice of/day in the life thing like I did for that story. I still wanted to tell the tales of the VKs and their lives in Auradon with their new families, but I wanted to do something different. So for this one, I thought I'd explore how they deal with family holidays. Now I'll try and do as many as I can, that's why I'm even doing Birthdays since I think of them as personal holidays. That being said, I think we'll start out with one of those birthdays.

Please enjoy...

* * *

Mal and Evie's Birthdays - Part 1

 _The time frame of this chapter is set in "Home", most likely just after the chapter's involving Ben's party, but before the chapter where Mal and Jane make that giant pool._

Fairy Godmother was in her office, her laptop booting up in front her. She'd been at the school earlier in the day making preparations for the upcoming school year when she'd received a phone call from Snow White asking if she could Skype with her later. Now that she was home, she texted Snow to let her know she was available.

"Hi, Snowy, it's good to hear from you," she greeted the queen.

"You too," Snow said happily. "How have you been?"

"Well, just feeling the pressure of handling two girls instead of one this summer."

"How are things going with Mal?"

"Good…at least now they are. Her and Jane seem to be getting along so much better now."

"That good to hear. Evie mentioned that they were arguing."

Fairy Godmother, sadly, proceeded to tell Snow about how they had become distant over the use of the wand, and, happily, told her about how they'd made up. Snow felt elated to hear that things were getting better between the two young half-fairies.

"The problem is, now that they're getting along, they seem to pushing their limits constantly. I've almost never had to ground Jane, but this year…"

"Partners in crime?"

"I'm glad that Jane's come out of shell, I really am, but I could do with a little less mischief."

Snow let out a small laugh and looked off screen for a moment. "Trust me I understand, Evie and Raymond have had a few… _adventures_ shall we say."

"I swear I'm being a good girl, Fairy Godmother," Fairy Godmother heard being shouted from the somewhere on Snow's side.

"Is someone there with you?"

"Not just someone," Snow smiled, waving off camera view.

The next thing Fairy Godmother knew, Evie was sliding herself into view right next to Snow. Both girls began to giggle incessantly.

"Evie!" Fairy Godmother greeted the young woman. "How are you, Sweetheart?"

"I'm awesome," she answered, her smile practically flowing as much as her sister's.

"So I'm assuming that whatever reason you asked for this call involved young Evie, here?" Fairy Godmother asked in a faux-conspiratory tone.

Snow nodded, a small smile on her beautiful face. "Evie's birthday is coming up."

"Really? I didn't think it was coming up this quick. That means you're turning seventeen, right?"

Evie nodded. "And it's not that quick, more like a month away. But that's what I wanted to talk to you about," she began. "You see, Mal is older than me, by all of two weeks."

"I know," Fairy Godmother sighed. "I've been racking my brain trying to figure out something to do for her."

"Then it's a good thing that we got in contact with you," Snow said. Fairy Godmother looked at her questioningly. " _Evie_ has been doing some thinking on that subject."

"And?" Fairy Godmother asked, her interest piqued.

"Well, you should know, Mal isn't really a fan of her birthday," Evie began, a sad look in her eyes. "Ever since the whole not being invited to Sleeping Beauty's christening, Mal's mom is completely anit-birthday party and _never_ bothered to consider them for her, so Mal's never had a birthday party of her own – ever."

"That's terrible," Fairy Godmother gasped.

Evie nodded. "Then there was the whole thing when my mother wouldn't let me invite Mal to my sixth birthday party, and well…she's never had what you would call a good birthday experience," she explained.

"So that's why she changes the conversation whenever I ask her what she wants to do that day," Fairy Godmother revealed absentmindedly.

"Yeah, she doesn't like taking about it," Evie said. "But I'd like to change that," she added cheerfully.

"And how are you going to manage that?" Fairy Godmother asked, once again intrigued. Evie just smiled sneakily.

* * *

A few days later Mal, Jane, and Fairy Godmother were seated for dinner, Mal's favorite to be exact: barbecue chicken, broccoli, and a baked potato, though she'll always admit that she could do without the broccoli. However, Fairy Godmother always told her that without the broccoli, or whatever vegetable she served, she wouldn't get her favorite dessert – jelly doughnuts with strawberry filling.

"Is there any more chicken?" she asked, stuffing the last of her current helping in her mouth.

"Yes, Sweetie, though you might want to save room for dessert," Fairy Godmother told her.

Mal looked like she was thinking. "I can handle it," she replied.

"The extra chicken might help her from over doing it on the doughnuts and making herself sick again," Jane chimed in, reminding everyone of the last time Mal had too much room for dessert.

Mal and Fairy Godmother groaned at the memory. The last time jelly doughnuts were on the menu, Mal had a few too many, made herself sick like Jane had mentioned, and instigated a truly legendary night of vomiting.

"I'll keep it under four, I promise," Mal said.

Later, as Mal was downing her third doughnut, Fairy Godmother decided it was time to start the plan. "Mal, honey, I wanted to talk to you about something," she began. Mal looked up at her, her green eyes nervous. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad. Your birthday is coming up and –"

"Why didn't you tell me?" Jane said in surprise.

"Because I don't normally like it," Mal said as she swallowed the piece of doughnut in her mouth.

"But everyone likes their birthday," Jane told her.

"Not everyone," Mal said, eyeing the plate of doughnuts sitting in the center of the table. Her stomach, and her sweet tooth, were telling to go ahead and have another, while her brain was replaying images of her crouched at the toilet, paying the price for one too many of those delicious little pastries. "After all, you never _actually_ met my mother," she finished telling Jane after deciding that three was enough. I can always have those for breakfast tomorrow, she thought.

"She never made a big deal out of it?" Jane asked, her voice starting to sound sad like a hurt puppy.

"Nope. Not a party, not a card, not a present…now that I think about it, she rarely even said happy birthday to me," Mal lamented.

"That's horrible," Jane pouted.

"I'm used to it," Mal told her as she pushed her plate away.

"Then we need to do something big this year," Jane said excitedly.

"No, we don't," Mal corrected her. Jane immediately looked at her like she'd spoken complete nonsense. "I'm perfectly alright with not making a big deal out of my birthday. After all this time, I really don't see the need to start celebrating like I'm Evie. Besides, Ben's planning a quiet dinner for just the two of us on it," she explained.

"About that," Fairy Godmother cut in, her voice stressed from the news she was going to deliver. Mal looked over at her in confusion.

"Don't say I can't go," she asked nervously. "I get that I'm grounded right now, but you said I could go out with him that night."

"I did, and you can, or rather you could've. Belle informed me that that Ben's been scheduled to attend some emergency council meetings in the northern part of the kingdom and he can't get out of it. He's gonna have to leave a few days before your birthday, and he'll be gone a week."

"But he promised," Mal said sadly.

"I know, Sweetie, but he absolutely can't get out of it, and from what Belle told me, he did try to get it moved to another time, but he couldn't."

Jane and Fairy Godmother watched as Mal's eyes began to water, and then as she began to blink them away as hard as she could. "May I be excused?" Mal asked flatly. If it hadn't been for how upset she looked, Fairy Godmother would've smiled at the fact that Mal was getting more used to using proper table manners. Instead, she simply nodded. "And is it okay if I call Ben about this?"

"Sure," Fairy Godmother told her.

Mal got up and left in the direction of her room.

"Did you see how upset she was?" Jane asked, her voice just above a whisper. "I think she might actually cry."

Fairy Godmother nodded. "I didn't know she'd take that so badly, but that just means we have to make sure that Evie's plan goes off even better than ever to make up for it."

"I still can't believe that _Evie_ is willingly giving up a birthday party of her own to give Mal one," Jane said in amazement.

"Those two really are the sisters they never had growing up," Fairy Godmother reflected. "Even Snow was surprised since she knows how much Evie does like being the center of attention."

"So, Evie really doesn't want _anything_ done for her?"

Fairy Godmother shook her head at her her daughter.

"She wants this to be all about Mal."

There's what she wants, and then there's what she'll get, Jane thought.

* * *

Jane looked at herself in the mirror. She had put on her blue sun dress with white flowers on it that came down to just above her knees. It had wide shoulder straps and a modest neckline. Normally she preferred a higher neckline, but Mal had gotten her the dress saying that she needed to loosen up and let her hair down sometimes. Ironically her hair was usually down, she thought, but then figured that Mal meant not being so high strung. If Mal could see me today, she smiled as she adjusted the pink bows she'd added to the straps. She ran her fingers through her hair to fan it out a little, and then nodded at her reflection.

She made her way over to her bedroom door and proceeded to lock it. Mom may be at the grocery store, but that doesn't mean I have to take any chances, she reasoned. She then walked back over to her mirror and…

"Be not here, but be there, let me be… _all up in Snow White's hair_ ," Jane intoned, hoping her flare at the end of the spell didn't throw it off too much. When it came to tweaking the wording of spells she didn't have the best track record and hoped that this one didn't cause her to magically poof from inside Snow White's _actual_ hair.

She watched as a billowing plume of light blue smoke started enveloping her, filling the mirror before finally disappearing, taking Jane with it.

Snow White was in a lounge chair by one of her palace's pools, enjoying some afternoon alone time. Florian had taken Evie and Raymond to the movies, leaving her with an afternoon off. She'd said she was fine to go with them, but he reminded her that she'd been spending so much time with Evie, that they both needed some time apart. She knew that he was right, not out of anything with any ill intent, but because he felt that Evie and Raymond needed to spend time together without her to bond on their own, so he offered to take them out for a day of whatever they wanted to do.

She was feeling relaxed, her eyes closed as she lay in the afternoon sun, the large umbrella helping to keep her fair skin from burning. As she tried to find herself in the right circumstances for a nap, she suddenly felt a slight swirling of the air. She opened her eyes just in time to see a twisting cloud of light blue smoke forming a few feet in front of her. She sat up straight and watched the billow until finally it dissipated revealing a single teenage girl.

"Jane?" she asked in bewilderment.

Jane looked around, then down at Snow, and then down at herself. She began feeling herself over, making sure everything was where it should me.

Head? Check.

Chest and stomach? Check and check.

Arms? Legs? Ditto.

Ten fingers? Yup.

"Yes! Transported without messing up," she celebrated. When she saw that she was in front of Snow White, she threw her arms into the air in triumph. "And I didn't come out of your hair."

"What?" Snow gasped as she heard what Jane said.

"Forget I said that last part, please," she smiled. "I needed to talk to you about Mal's birthday party."

Snow held up her hand to quiet the young girl in front of her. Jane looked at her expectantly. "I thought you were grounded," she told Jane, who simply nodded.

"I kind of am."

"Does your mother know you're here?"

Jane didn't know how to answer that without getting into trouble with the Queen in front of her.

"I'll take your silence as a no," Snow said. She then shook her head in building frustration. "Oh, my God, Jane, you and Mal cannot keep sneaking over here."

"We didn't – I came alone, and it was for a good cause."

"That cause being?" Snow asked, her voice letting Jane know that whatever came out of her mouth next had better be really good.

"I want to make sure Evie gets a party too."

"But Evie doesn't want one, at least according to her," Snow told her as she motioned for Jane to sit on the lounge chair next to hers.

"Yeah, I know, she wants this year to be all about Mal. And that's why we need to throw Evie one too," Jane said excitedly as she sat down facing Snow. "She's doing what she's doing because she wants to give Mal the best birthday she's ever had. I just think that we should reward her by making sure she's not forgotten either."

Evie really does have the greatest friends in the world, Snow thought as she looked at the smiling half-fairy in front of her. She didn't even know what Jane had in mind, but whatever it was, it had the young girl unable to sit still since she was practically bouncing in place. "I should be upset that you snuck over here, but if you have a really good plan, I'll happily overlook it, provided you go home and ask your mother if you can come over and do this."

Jane squealed with joy and once again raised her arms in triumph. "Not a problem, but…can we tell her its so I can help plan for Mal's. Mom's so stressed out over planning this party that I don't want to add to it. I figure I can plan all the Evie details with your help."

Snow held out her hand and Jane and she shook on it. Before letting go, Snow smiled at Jane and couldn't help herself. "Wand or not, you really are your mother's daughter, you know that?"

Jane beamed with pride at the comparison. Apparently you don't _need_ a wand to be someone's Fairy Godmother, Jane thought, or in this case, Fairy _Goddaughter_.


	2. Chapter 2

**Mal and Evie's Birthday's - Part 2**

Mal looked at her reflection on her closet mirror, checking to make sure that the sundress she was wearing looked alright. It was black with the print of purple roses all over it. If it wasn't for the color, it would actually look like something that had come out of Jane's closet more than hers. But Fairy Godmother had gotten it for her to wear to tonight's birthday dinner, so she figured it should get some use. Too bad it's too hot to wear my leather jacket with it, she thought.

"Mal, you almost ready, Sweetie?" she heard Fairy Godmother call out from the hallway.

"Yeah," she answered back. With a deep breath she mustered her resolve and went to join Fairy Godmother and Jane.

She met them in the living room where they'd been waiting for her, Jane in a white peasant top and matching blue skirt that Evie had sent her, and Fairy Godmother in a lavender dress. Upon seeing her, Fairy Godmother's eyes lit up. "I knew you would look beautiful in that dress," she smiled.

"Yeah, you clean up nice," Jane added.

"Thank you," Mal said sheepishly.

Fairy Godmother rose from the couch and walked up to Mal. She took the now seventeen year-old girl's face in her hands and looked her in the eyes. Mal was smiling, but one look into those green eyes and Fairy Godmother could tell that Mal's smile was just her trying not to look upset for her and Jane's sake. The sadness over not being able to be with Ben was clearly still affecting her and it almost broke Fairy Godmother's heart.

It'll all be worth it in a little while, she thought.

"I'm sorry you couldn't spend this day the way you wanted, but I promise you're going to love tonight," Fairy Godmother told her.

"I know," Mal said, hoping Fairy Godmother was right.

Minutes later the three of them had piled into Fairy Godmother's minivan and they were off to dinner. "Mal, could reach into the glove box and grab what's in there, please?" Fairy Godmother asked after a few minutes. Mal did as asked, but became confused when she pulled out a black scarf. She held it up while looking at a Fairy Godmother questioningly. "It's a blindfold, and I need you to put in on."

"Say what now?" Mal asked.

"Me and mom have a small surprise planned. But we don't want you to see it till we get to the restaurant," Jane explained.

"Are you serious?" Mal asked, clearly not totally on board.

"Completely," Fairy Godmother answered her. "I told you you'd love tonight, and I meant it, but I need you to do this. Please, Sweetie?" Fairy Godmother implored.

Mal rolled her eyes, but did as asked and put on the blindfold and tied it behind her head. Fairy Godmother looked back and forth between Mal and the road and then waved her hand in front of Mal's face for certainty. Confident that Mal was unable to see she shot a quick look over to Jane who understood that it was meant to say one thing: seatbelt on.

Fairy Godmother gripped the wheel a little tighter and began to mentally say a spell. Jane watched as the minivan became engulfed in a bright white light. Soon, Jane found it hard to take the luminosity coming from the glow and couldn't even look in its direction, let alone outside the car. Just before she covered her eyes and looked down toward the floor, she snuck a look toward her mother and was surprised to see her not even flinching in the face of the light's brightness. How does that light not bother her, she thought.

Seconds later, Jane felt a slight tapping on her knee. She looked up, half uncovering her eyes and peeked at her surroundings. The minivan was no longer on the road, but parked in front of the palace. She grabbed her phone from her purse and immediately began texting Evie and Snow.

"Alright Mal, we're here," Fairy Godmother said cheerfully.

"Does that mean I can take off the blindfold?"

"Not yet. Jane, help her out."

Jane got out and opened Mal's door and helped her out. She looped Mal's arm into hers and started leading her inside. Once inside, they led her through the palace halls until they were outside the doors to the Grand Ballroom.

"We've stopped," Mal said. "Are we finally here? Can I take this thing off?" she asked as she grabbed at the blindfold.

"In a few more seconds," Jane answered as she slapped Mal's hands away from her blindfold. Mal groaned in frustration. "Oh quit your whining you big baby."

"I'm gonna remember that," Mal told her.

Fairy Godmother rolled her eyes and smiled at the way her girls interacted. Yes, they might be sniping at each other, but she knew that beneath that, they really did care about each other. However, before they could continue, she moved to open the doors and carefully led Mal inside.

"Okay, now you can take the blindfold off," she told Mal.

"Finally," she said as yanked the blindfold off. Immediately she noticed something just a little bit weird. "Why are the lights off?"

Almost immediately the light came on, temporarily blinding her and forcing her to cover her eyes. As she shook off the shock to her vision, she suddenly heard a loud exclamation.

"Surprise!"

Her eyes shot open and she was confronted with a ballroom full of people. She looked from face to face seeing one friend after another standing in front of the crowd; Evie, Carlos, and Jay. Doug and Lonnie. Even Audrey, and most surprising of all, Chad were there. But by far, the best sight for her was seeing Ben there, smiling at her, his eyes shining at the sight of her, like she was the only one in the room.

"Oh my God," she gasped, her hands covering her mouth. "What the…?" she asked as she turned toward Jane and Fairy Godmother.

"Happy Birthday, Mal," Fairy Godmother said, an almost too bright smile on her face.

"You mean…? Is this for me?" Mal asked. Fairy Godmother nodded while a few of the guests laughed in appreciation. Fairy Godmother then pointed in the direction of the back of the ballroom and Mal gaped again as she saw a huge green banner with purple lettering that read, "Happy 17th Birthday Mal!", surrounded by an image of the same dragon formed heart on her leather jacket. "We're you in on this too?" she asked Jane.

Jane nodded. "Me, Mom, Snow, and Evie."

Mal felt herself tearing up and threw her arms around Jane, giving her a tight hug. "Thank you, Janey." Next she turned to Fairy Godmother and gave her a big hug as well. "Thank you, Mom," she whispered into Fairy Godmother's ear.

"You're welcome, Honey," Fairy Godmother whispered back.

After she let go of the hug, Mal immediately went over to Evie and hugged her, but before she let go Mal opened up the hug and waved Snow White into it. She didn't notice, but several people, especially Fairy Godmother and Jane, began taking pictures of the hug knowing what a rare occurrence it was for the purple-hair half-fairy to show such emotion.

"Now that you're done being all sappy, can we party now?" came voice from the crowd.

"Really Chad?" Belle chastised him. He raised his hands in surrender.

"And actually, we're not done yet," Snow said as she pulled herself away from the hug.

"There's more?" Mal asked.

Snow nodded. She brought Mal and Evie back to where Mal had originally been standing and faced them toward the back wall. She stood between both girls, one arm around each of their shoulders. "You see, Mal, all of this was Evie's idea. She wanted you to know what it was like to finally have a big birthday. Even if it meant she gave up hers."

"Gave up…Evie no," Mal said.

"Yes," Evie told her. "You deserve one happy memory about your birthday."

"And you deserve another one," Snow cut in. "Especially after this. So someone here decided to make sure you had one by making this day about both of you."

Both teenage girls looked at Snow. She shook her head. They then looked back at Fairy Godmother.

"Don't look at me, I'm just as confused as you two."

"Janey, now," Snow said.

Everyone watched as Jane stepped forward and closed her eyes. She took in a deep breath and shook her head to loosen up. Everyone watched as she twisted at the waist until she was almost turned backwards, both her hands by her right hip. She silently started to recite a spell in her head that she researched from her mother's spell book and then turned, pointing her hands at the banner. The whole room watched as beams of white light blasted from her hands and hit the banner. Seconds later, the banner began to glow and was then surrounded by bright white and baby blue colored orbs. Finally after a few seconds, the lights disappeared and the banner had changed. It was now split in half, one side still green, but now the other was dark blue. The message on it now read, "Happy 17th Birthday Mal & Evie!"

The letters on Mal's side were still purple, but the letters on Evie's side were bright red. Mal's side still had her dragon heart behind her name, but Evie's side was adorned with a glittery tiara over her name. Almost immediately, the decorations in the room began splitting down the middle. Half the tables, balloons, streamers and table declarations were green and purple, the other half, red and dark blue.

"Did it work?" Jane asked as she opened her eyes. The room started applauding and yelled surprise again, this time for Evie.

Evie couldn't speak because she was crying too much. She turned and threw her arms around Snow, repeating thank you over her sobs.

"Oh, you're welcome, Sis, but I only _knew_ about this. The person who _did_ all this for you was her," Snow admitted while pointing at Jane.

Jane felt herself immediately become wrapped in a hug from both Mal and Jane. They were now thanking her and calling her the best little sister ever!

After all the tears and thanks, and the retouching of makeup, the party began and went well into the night, with both of birthday girls having the best birthday either of them had ever remembered.

* * *

Eventually, Mal and Ben found themselves outside on the balcony alone. Mal was leaning onto the balcony, Ben behind her, his arms wrapped around her waist, his chin on her shoulder.

"I should be mad that you lied to me," Mal mock pouted.

"Yeah, but when Fairy Godmother called me and told me about this, I figured you'd forgive me," he replied cheerfully, kissing her on the cheek. Mal giggled and turned and then they kissed on the lips. After a moment of making out, they finally came up for air. "So, am I forgiven?"

Mal kissed him quickly on the lips and nodded.

"Happy Birthday," he wished her.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: I spent the last few weeks planning, writing and finishing up two other Descendants stories, that I put my other stories on the back burner. This one has gone almost two months without updating and I feel bad about that. So, to make up for it, I'm going to upload this chapter today, and the second part of it tomorrow morning. This chapter, and part two of it, were fun to write because Halloween is my favorite holiday and I hope that shows, and I also hope you all like what I did here.

Please enjoy...

* * *

 **Halloween - Part 1**

 _One week before Halloween..._

If ever there was a holiday was tailor made for the Isle of the Lost, it was Halloween. A holiday where you were expected to be greedy and conniving and mean. The children on the Isle were especially bad on that day. Halloween, and sometimes the day before and the day after, were spent committing increased acts of mischief and vandalism. Mal was particularly famous for leaving the Isle spray painted from end to end. Jay was known for making entire bags of stale candy disappear from the smaller Isle kids. Evie was a fan of dressing up. And Carlos was famous for saying, "Who needs one day? I practically live with a demon _every_ day of my life."

But now the four VKs were curious to see just how Auradon handled what was hands down their favorite holiday.

"So, Ben, just what does the kingdom do on the best night of the year?" Mal asked her boyfriend as they walked through the aisles of a costume shop.

" _Best night of the year_?" he chuckled as he looked at her surprised.

"Island full of villains. Holiday dedicated to mischief and candy. It might as well be called Isle Christmas," she smiled.

Ben laughed as he looked at one of the costumes on the rack, a firefighter's costume. He pulled it out for Mal's opinion.

"A man in uniform does look good, but," she answered, trailing off at the end.

"What?"

"Seems a little too _good_ ," she told him critically.

He looked at her with a smile and a raised eyebrow. "You do realize who you're dating, right?" he joked.

"Of course I do," she told him, "but this is the one holiday guaranteed to let me have a little bit of the Isle here on Auradon."

"It comes with girl's costume," Ben tried, pulling out the female firefighters costume. It was a black mini dress with yellow safety trim on the short sleeves and across the waist probably meant to serve as belt. She looked at how small and low cut it was and cringed in her own mind.

"It's nice. Does it come in adult size?" she asked sarcastically.

"Not a fan of this are you?"

"Your mother would kill me if I wore that, and she'd be totally justified. Evie wouldn't even wear that," she replied. Then she thought about it and relented. "At least on Halloween. That looks more like a 'for Doug and only Doug' kind of look."

"I didn't need to know that," he said. Mal smiled while wagging her eyebrows at her boyfriend.

"Look, apparently you want to do a couple costume, and _I_ think you need to go bad for one night. So," she said, a gleefully wicked smile gracing her lips, "how about letting me pick the costumes?"

Ben looked at suspiciously.

"What?" Mal asked. "I promise they'll be fun, and I won't have to feel like stripper," she argued while wrapping her arms around his neck shoulders. She placed a small kiss on his lips. "So, how about it?"

Ben smiled. This should be fun, he thought.

* * *

"I still don't think this a good idea," Carlos said to Jane.

"It's a great idea," Jane told him from Mal's bed.

"I should also mention that I think this is gonna end badly."

"Carlos, stop complaining and listen to your girlfriend," Evie scolded him as she kneeled next to him, a tape measure running down his leg. "And stop moving, it's making hard to get a good measurement."

"I thought you knew my size," Carlos complained.

"I used to, but you've gotten a few inches taller, so I need to do this."

"Oh, sorry," Carlos said.

"No problem," Evie said. "Besides, I'm sure Jane's likes having a tall man," she added with a smile and wink to Jane.

Jane nodded despite a slight blush. "Taller than me at least. And besides, your height helps the costume," Jane said.

"I still can't believe what you're doing," Evie said as she wrote down a number on a pad.

"Do you think it's a bad idea? I can come up with something else?" Jane asked in a moment of self-doubt.

Evie laughed. "No, like you said it's a great idea. Do you need me to do your hair?" she asked hopefully, really wanting to do a makeover on the young half fairy.

"No, I'm gonna use a spell, thank you though."

Evie nodded. "What about him?" she asked in reference to Carlos.

"I'm getting him a wig. He won't let me use magic on him," Jane lamented.

"I barely let Evie cut it," Carlos told his girlfriend. Jane looked over at Evie, who nodded in agreement.

"Jay's even worse," Evie revealed.

"Can I sit down now?" Carlos interrupted. Both girls told him yes. "So how long do you think it'll take you make the costume?"

"Hopefully not too long, but remember, I'm gonna have to work on this while Mal's not here so I don't spoil anything."

"Cool," Jane thought.

"Are you sure you don't want me to _make_ your outfit?"

Jane got a positively evil smile on her face and shook her head.

"Okay you have _definitely_ been spending too much time with Big Sis," Evie said, her own smile matching Jane's.

This is _really_ going to blow up on us, Carlos thought.

* * *

"You made your own costume Evie, why can't you just make mine?" Doug asked from inside the dressing room.

"And mine," Jay groaned from inside his dressing room. "I mean you made Audrey's."

"Because I'm also making Jane's and Carlos'," she responded from her chair outside in the store's waiting area. "Four people in one week is hard enough even for me."

"So stop complaining and try on what we got you," Audrey added from her own chair.

Evie and Audrey had brought Doug and Jay to the same costume shop that Mal and Ben had been to a few days earlier. Mal had told Evie about how many costumes they had, even this close to Halloween, and Evie had decided that it was the perfect place to do some shopping and give herself a little bit of a break. Audrey, while having her costume ready, still hadn't been able to convince Jay to wear a matching one, or any kind of costume. She figured if they went with Evie and Doug, Evie could help her make Jay at least wear something.

"Thanks again for helping me," Audrey said to Evie.

"No problem," Evie told her. "Believe it or not, this is my first Halloween with people who aren't just me and my mother."

Audrey looked at Evie in confusion. Evie then started telling her about the banishment from Mal's mother from when she was six to just after she turned sixteen.

"And yet you and Mal are friends?"

Evie nodded. "We think the bonding happened over a mutual fear of disappointing our mother's," Evie said.

Audrey hated the sound of that. Not the bonding part, but of the fear part. Growing up she'd never believed she could do anything that would disappoint her mother to point that she needed to be afraid of it. Sure, there were the occasional moments when she'd gone too far with her own vanity, but she was trying to fix that. And because of it, her mother was practically glowing with happiness over it. She said it was Audrey finally growing up.

Audrey was about to offer her sympathies when the boys reluctantly came out. Both her and Evie smiled, and then started giggling at the sight of their boyfriends.

"What do you think?" Doug asked in slight embarrassment.

Evie had picked out a knight costume for him. And despite it looking way to generic, she thanked goodness that it was miles away from looking like he was just wearing a carbon copy of Jane's mascot costume. The costume consisted of black pants with plastic shin guards painted in metallic silver and a gray shirt that was designed to look like chain mail. Over that was total blue tunic that had an embroidered shield on it with a generic looking lion in its center. She opted to not make him wear the fake chain mail helmet, deciding that she could make a crown for him to wear instead.

"I'm thinking this is a good look on you," she told him, a big appreciative smile on her face.

"He does pull it off," Audrey agreed. "But not like my man does," she commented as she looked Jay over.

She'd chosen for Jay a Zorro costume, mostly because it seemed the least likely costume he'd seem embarrassed in. As she looked him over in the black pants, matching lose fitting black shirt, and black cape she had only one thought: I am one lucky girl.

"I feel ridiculous," Jay grumbled.

"You look awesome," Audrey told him.

"Yeah, you do," Evie concurred.

"Why didn't you put on the mask?" Doug asked.

"Yeah, and the hat," Audrey said.

"Be lucky I was even willing to put on the cape," Jay said. Audrey giggled but went up and kissed him on the lips.

"And I am thankful you did. I get you don't like dressing up, but please wear this, for me," she pleaded, making her voice higher at the end. Jay was about to say no when she tilted her head and started looking at him with that puppy dog pout of hers. One look at those big brown eyes and he knew he was gonna crack.

"Fine, for _you_ , Foxy," he relented.

"Yay," Audrey celebrated, kissing him on the cheek. This year's palace party is gonna awesome, she thought in anticipation.


	4. Chapter 4

**Halloween - Part 2**

 _Halloween_ _Night_ …

The dorm hall was buzzing with people. Some were crisscrossing, trying to meet up with friends for a night of plans. Others were scrambling for last minutes items for their costumes. A few were making mad dashes to find or put together costumes at the last minute.

But the VKs and their friends were fully prepared and gathered in the common room…well most of them. Right now, only Jay, Audrey, and Doug were waiting. Doug was sitting on the arms of one of the chairs, his foot tapping nervously.

"Calm down, man," Jay told him. "You're getting on my nerves."

"Sorry," Doug said as he forced his foot to stop moving. "This is just the first time I've seen Evie's costume."

"And you are going to love it," Audrey said as she walked in, catching Doug's last words.

"Hello, Foxy," Jay said in a perfect imitation of the day he met Audrey. His smile was practically predatory as he gazed at his girlfriend dressed as what looked to him as Princess Jasmine.

"You like, baby?" she asked playfully as she spun to give him a full view. He nodded as he took in the outfit. I can definitely see why Aladdin wanted to move up in the world, he thought. Even Doug was momentarily mesmerized by the sight of Audrey. At least until the sound of heels broke up the reverie. He turned and suddenly felt like his whole body had been hit with a huge electric shock.

Evie had walked in wearing a witch costume that took his breath away. She was wearing a sparkly blue dress with starry black side panels and see-through puffy short sleeves. There was a blue stand-up collar a little higher than the one that was on her coronation dress. She'd made the dress with a high-low skirt and petticoat, and a decorative lace-up front that pulled the black side panels in at her waist, accentuating her slim figure. She'd also made a black witch hat accented with a sheer blue and gold star printed hatband. She finished off the outfit with a pair of black stockings, a pair of gold star printed fingerless gloves, the aforementioned high heels and a broom she "borrowed" from one of the dorm hall's decorations.

"Happy Halloween, everyone," Evie said cheerfully. "Well, what do you think?" she asked, as she spun around much like Audrey had. Doug stood motionless along with speechless. "Doug?"

"Heigh-ho," he said under his breath, getting a giggle from Audrey and Evie, and a grumbled "it's like our first day all over again" from Jay.

"Thank you, baby," she said walking over to him and giving him a quick kiss. She looked around and saw Jay wearing the full costume that Audrey had gotten him. "I see you got him to wear the mask?" Audrey nodded. "It looks good," she complimented.

She looked around the room and took stock that it was only them.

"Where's everyone else?"

"On their way," Jay told her. "Mal just texted me that she and Ben are already walking over and Carlos says that he and Jane are just finishing up."

"I can't wait for you guys to see Jane and Carlos," Evie smiled.

"Just tell us what they're gonna be," Jay demanded. All week long he had to hear from Carlos that he couldn't say what Jane had talked him into wearing and he was growing impatient.

"Who's going to be what?" came Mal's voice. Everyone turned to look and their eyes widened and their jaws dropped.

"Oh my God," Audrey gasped as she looked at Ben and Mal.

Mal had chosen skeleton costumes for them. Ben was wearing a full body suit, though it was loose enough that it looked more like he was wearing some coveralls, that had the bones of the body painted on it. Even the black gloves he was wearing had the bones of the hands on them. He was also wearing a black tailcoat with red lapels and red cuffs with black skulls for buttons. On his head was a black and red top hat. But the most eye-catching part of him was the skull face paint he had on that looked eerily real.

For her part, Mal was wearing a female version of Ben's costume. Her costume however consisted of black heels and black leggings with painted on bones and a tight black spaghetti tank top with painted on torso bones. She also had on a long-sleeved black waistcoat with the same red trim, but without the long tails that Ben's coat had so that it didn't interfere with her short black and red petticoat skirt. She also had a more feminine style top hat on, perched off center on her hair, which everyone was surprised to see temporarily dyed black. Her face make-up, while not as striking as Ben's, was still rather pronounced.

"You two look sick," Jay smirked. "Now why couldn't we have done something that?" he asked Audrey.

"Could you really see me wearing _that_ make-up?" Audrey asked dryly.

"I can see that we still need to loosen you up a little," he said. He grunted in surprise when Audrey gave him a quick slap to the arm. "Sorry."

"Seriously, M, how did you come up with this?" Evie asked as she looked her friends over.

"I just wanted to get Ben to embrace his evil side for a night," Mal answered, a wicked tone to her voice.

"So, Ben, how does it feel?" Evie asked him.

"Not that bad," he smiled, the make-up causing it look positively garish. Mal smiled evily at the sight. "I definitely think we'll win best couples costume," he told her.

"I don't think it'll be that easy," Evie said in sing-song.

"Why?" Mal asked skeptically.

"Hey guys," came Carlos' voice as he and Jane walked in. Immediately jaws dropped again, this time however, they began to turn into smiles as they tried not to laugh at the irony of what they were seeing.

Jane and Carlos were dressed as…Mal and Ben. Carlos was wearing a suit almost identical to the one that Ben wore at his coronation. But the part that everyone found themselves trying to not break out laughing from was the blonde wig on top of his head.

"Nice hair, buddy," Jay snickered.

"I think so," Jane said.

Everyone began to look over the younger fairy, taking in the dark purple pants with black studded accents that led down to the big, black, chunky combat boots. Up on top she had on a very convincing replica of Mal's purple and green leather jacket. And in all their opinions, minus Evie's, she even managed to find a fairly accurate color to her own wig.

"Really?" Mal asked in Jane's direction.

"Don't you like it?" Jane asked snidely.

"It's a good look," Mal mused. "Love the wig," she said curling a strand around her finger.

"Not a wig," Jane smirked while raising an eyebrow.

"This is real?"

"Bibbiped it myself."

Suddenly Mal became very suspicious. She moved her hand down to the jacket lapel. She turned it over and then, to everyone's surprise, turned Jane around and started trying to see inside the collar. Jane started complaining as Mal forced her head forward enough to try and get a glimpse of whatever it was she was looking for.

"Stop that," Jane hissed.

"I knew it," Mal said as she let Jane go. "This _is_ my jacket. Then that means that those are my pants?"

"Maybe," Jane smiled. There was snickering as a couple of them realized that she was smiling just like Mal.

"And my boots?" Jane shrugged. Mal gasped when it dawned on her. "You went into my closet and _stole_ my clothes? How could you?"

Jane grinned and chuckled. "Have you met me? Hi, I'm Mal, I'm from the Isle of the Lost," she said in an almost prefect impersonation.

No one tried to hold back their laughter at Jane's action. There were even a few snickers at the sight.

"You think this is funny?" Mal questioned. "First, your steal my clothes, and now you think that can just impersonate me?"

Jane draped an arm around Carlos' shoulders, turned his face toward hers, leaned in, and kissed him. "Seems that way from where I'm standing."

"She does you really well," Evie offered.

"You know, Mal, they say impersonation is the sincerest form of flattery," Audrey tried.

Mal took in a deep breath and then calmed herself. "Enjoy tonight, because you know what: I'm telling Mom," she warned Jane as she stormed off.

"Have fun with that…Fairy God-whiner," Jane shouted after her. They heard Mal screech in frustration from the hallway and suddenly Jane burst out laughing hysterically. "Oh my God, that so much fun," Jane raved as she broke character with Mal out of the room.

"Jane, you look amazing," Evie complimented. There was a chorus of agreement.

"You don't look too bad either, Carlos," Ben said.

"Thanks."

"Is your hair…?" Doug asked.

"No, mine's a wig," he revealed.

"Is it weird…her looking like Mal?" Audrey blurted.

"Seriously?" Jay looked at her. " _That's_ your question about their costumes?"

"So, it wouldn't be weird if I was dressed like her? Or Evie?"

"I'm not answering that."

"It's a little weird," Carlos answered her. "I mean I know it's still Jane, but she does a convincing enough Mal that when she holds my hand, or kisses me, I have to remind myself that it _isn't_ Mal."

"You don't think she's really gonna tell Mom, do you?" Jane asked, her normal apprehensiveness suddenly kicking in.

"No," Ben shook his head. "But I'm still gonna go check on her," he added, immediately making his way out of the room.

"So, who's up for getting to the party?" Jay asked.

"Yeah, I definitely want to see which of them wins best couples costume," Audrey smirked.

* * *

The Auradon Royal Halloween Ball was in full swing. The walls, tables, and even the ceiling were decorated in orange and black, skulls, ghosts, witches, cobwebs, and tombstones. While not going for a completely terrifying motif as they were used to on the Isle, even the VKs were mpressed by the way Auradon embraced the darker side of the holiday while still holding on to the spirit of fun of the day.

The music was pumping, people were dancing, others were eating, and everyone was looking around, seeing what everyone else was dressed as so they could vote on the different costume categories. To make it easy, people were using their phones to cast their vote. Soon enough, the time came to start announcing the winners. While they applauded Chad and Lonnie each winning best guy and girl costume, everyone was waiting to see who won best couples costume since everyone was completely in awe of Ben and Mal, and of Jane and Carlos.

"Alright everybody," said Ally, who was dressed as the Mad-hatter, "it's time for the award we've all been waiting for tonight – best couples costume."

The audience cheered.

"I need the two top nominees to come on up on stage. So, as if we didn't already know who they are, will King Ben and Mal, and Jane and Carlos get up here."

The two couples made their way up to the stage, each one posing for the audience. Ally pulled the envelope with the results from her coat pocket and tore it open. The crowd watched, with bated breath, as she read the names of the winners silently. She made a face that said while something in the results did shock her, she wasn't too surprised.

"I must say, that this is the closest vote I've ever seen for one of these costume contests," she began. "But, without further ado…that's such a funny word, isn't it? _Ado_ ," she said, sounding the word out, stretching it for her own amusement.

"Get on with it, Ally," Mal and Jane said in unison, and to the amusement of the crowd, in exactly the same tone. Both girls looked over at each other. Mal looked slightly annoyed, but still smiled. Jane just winked and cocked her head cheekily.

"Oh alright," Ally acquiesced. "Without further ado, the winners of best couple's costume are…Jane and Carlos as Mal and King Ben."

The crowd burst into loud cheers, a few boos from those who voted for Mal and Ben, but otherwise everyone seemed to be okay with the results. After Jane and Carlos had taken their prize, the four teens made their way off stage.

"Congratulations, guys," Ben told them as they made it to the floor and the band took back over.

"Thanks," Carlos said.

"Yeah, thank you, Ben," Jane said. She then turned toward Mal. "Are you okay with this? I mean I know you didn't seem too happy when you saw me."

Mal looked at Jane, and suddenly Jane felt very uneasy. The make-up was making Mal's face difficult to read, so she didn't know if Mal was upset, stoic, or annoyed.

"Next time, ask to borrow my clothes…and my hair," Mal told Jane firmly. "Other than that, I suppose I can be happy you won," she laughed. Jane started laughing too, and soon the two of them were hugging it out, Mal surprising herself with how easy this act was becoming.


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: This took longer to get updated than I wanted it to, but once I started writing it, it just kept flowing. Now, I know that so far each holiday has had two chapters. I really feel that this chapter on Thanksgiving works with just one, but I'll understand if you all want to maybe read something involving the VKs when they're at home with their new families. If you do, just let me know in the comments or PM me. If enough people request it, I'll do that as the next chapter before starting the Christmas chapters.

As always, please enjoy...

* * *

"So why do we get the whole week off for Thanksgiving?" Carlos asked as he and the other VKs and their friends were sitting down to lunch a week before Auradon Prep let out for the aforementioned Thanksgiving Break.

"Because it's easier than just having the last two days out of the week off," Jane answered him. "At least that's what Mom told me when I asked that," she added as gave him a small kiss on the cheek. She giggled as she watched him blush.

"But we're not allowed to stay on campus?" Mal inquired. Ben shook his head along with Jane.

"Campus is effectively closed for the week," he told her. "Why?"

"I was just wondering. I mean, if school is closed, then that means we all have to go home, right?" she asked. Ben nodded. Mal's face dropped just a little bit. "Which means that you have to leave," she said to Evie.

"What do you mean?" Evie asked her.

"You're going to have to go to Snow's, which is all the way on the other side of the kingdom," Mal said almost angrily.

"Are you upset that I'm not going to be here for Thanksgiving?" Evie asked.

Mal didn't answer, but it was clear to everyone that Evie had deduced correctly. It was quite the surprise for the gathered students, but not for Evie. The blue-haired girl knew that Mal was not a real fan of the distance that Snow White's kingdom forced between the two of them. Ever since they become friends – and eventually sisters – back on the Isle, they'd been practically inseparable. But when they'd all been sent to live with their new respective families, Evie was the one that seemed to be at the disadvantage due to where Snow White lived.

The rest of them lived with families that all lived here in Auradon City while Snow lived in Charmington. And while it wasn't all the way on the other side of the kingdom like Mal exaggerated, it wasn't all that close either. By car it was a little over three hours away. Or, if you decided to bend the rules like Mal and Jane, a couple of seconds if you used a spell to teleport. But Snow was insisting that she and Raymond fly home this time to cut the time down.

"M, Snow's really got her heart set on me being there. She…"

"Wants you there so her whole family can be there," Mal finished for her. "I know, but…I just figured we could all see each other during the break. But you're gonna be so far away that…," Mal trailed off.

The table grew silent for a little bit as everyone processed the exchange they'd just heard. It was obvious to them that the thought of Evie not being around was affecting Mal, who surely wanted her best friend to be with her. What they didn't know was that it was deeper than that. The sudden stability that came with living with Fairy Godmother and Jane had caused Mal to begin clinging to her friends even more because she realized that they weren't just friends, they were family, too.

"It's not like we won't video chat," Evie told her gently.

"It's not the same," Mal told her. "This is our first real family holiday together and I thought…I just figured…"

"We could all be together," Evie finished. Mal nodded. "We'll think of something," the blue-nette told her friend.

* * *

"So, you'd like me to allow you to do what?" Fairy Godmother asked as she looked at Evie who sat on the other side of her office desk.

"I need to use the school's kitchen," Evie repeated politely.

That's what I thought I heard, Fairy Godmother thought. Just a few minutes ago, Evie she had been informed by her secretary that a student was asking to speak with her. She walked out to greet the student she was surprised to see Evie sitting patiently.

"Evie? Is everything alright?" she asked as Evie stood up to meet her. "Nothing's wrong I hope?"

"No, everything's okay – mostly," she answered. Her answer caused some concern for the headmistress, and Fairy Godmother quickly ushered her into her office. Once there, Evie began telling her what was going on with Mal. Fairy Godmother immediately wanted to call her oldest in and find out what she could do to help when she reminded herself that Evie was probably here without Mal's knowledge.

"And what do you hope to accomplish by using the kitchen?" Fairy Godmother inquired.

"A family dinner," Evie smiled.

Fairy Godmother looked at the young woman in front of her and smiled warmly. This small group of children never stops amazing me, she thought.

"Evie, can I ask you something?" Evie nodded. "For lack of a better term, when it comes to you Isle children, you're the mom of the group aren't you?"

"It feels like it sometimes," Evie smiled and laughed.

Fairy Godmother chucked and leaned in. "I'll be honest, I don't have a problem with you doing this, but I do need to let you know that there will be a few conditions." Evie looked back at Mal's surrogate mother anxiously. "First off, _if_ I let you do this, I'll actually let you use one of the auxiliary kitchens. We use them mostly to help out the staff when there's a special occasion and the food needs are just a little more than the main kitchen can handle. They're smaller, and should make sure that you're not in the way of the kitchen staff as they cook for the rest of the students. Second, and most important to me, this isn't going to interfere with any exams you might still need to take, is it?"

Evie shook her head.

"No ma'am," she answered. "So I'd have time to do this, I asked my teachers if I could take my midterms early before and after school. Finished the last one yesterday. My teachers even said I could miss last few days because of it."

I wish some of the other students showed this kind of initiative, Fairy Godmother thought.

"Well then, I see no problem with you doing this. Although, don't be surprised if I pop in on you every now and then to make sure you're not overwhelmed."

"No problem, and thank you," Evie said with her usual beaming smile.

* * *

Raymond was lying on his bed in his dorm room, playing a game on his phone, bored since his afternoon classes were cancelled due to the teachers not having a midterm. His roommate was at his desk, typing furiously away on his laptop, trying to finish a paper for one of his classes. His character had just died and he was about to restart the game when he heard a knocking on the door. He got up and answered it, surprised to see Evie standing on the other side.

"Hi, Ray," Evie said cheerfully.

"Hey," he greeted, his mood perking up a little bit. "What are you doing here?"

"I need a favor," she answered him. "I think you told me that you don't have any classes for the rest of the day, right?" He nodded. "Cool, I'm gonna need you to help me with a surprise I'm putting together."

"Are you actuallfy talking to girl?" Raymond's roommate came up to the door saying before Raymond could respond to Evie. "Oh my God it's you," the chubby glasses wearing boy said, his eyes widening in shock.

"Hey, Bart," Evie said as she saw Bashful 's youngest son.

"Um…uh…hi," Bart stuttered, finishing off with an awkward wave. "I…I need to finish my report," he added quickly before darting back into the room.

"Is he okay?" Evie asked in concern. "He's not afraid of me, is he?" she added apprehensively, knowing that there were a few people who still looked at her and her friends with some…nervousness.

"Afraid? Try totally in love with," Raymond answered her. "He just doesn't know how to handle the actual sight of you so close," he added. Evie started giggling, finding the idea of one of Doug's younger cousins having a crush on her adorable. "So what favor do you need?"

"You're going to help me cook."

"Say what now?" he asked like he'd just heard his aunt speaking gibberish.

"I'm putting together a dinner and I need some help. I want it to be a surprise, and you're the person who it would hurt the least to know about it."

"Do I have a choice?"

"Bart, I'm gonna borrow Ray for a couple of hours," she shouted into the room before grabbing Raymond's hand and dragging him off.

I guess this means I don't have a choice, he thought.

* * *

"Do any of you know what's going on?" Mal asked as she and Ben, Jay and Audrey, Carlos and Jane, and Doug made their way to one of the dining hall's private dining rooms.

"I hope it has to do with why she made us all skip dinner," Carlos complained.

"Stop complaining," Jay told him roughly.

"You'll have to forgive him," Jane stepped in, "he's a little cranky since he hasn't eaten. I told you to have some of my grapes."

"They weren't going to be enough," he muttered.

"Well, we're here, so hopefully we can get some food in you – and Jay," Audrey said. "He's been the same way."

When the group got to the doors, they knocked and waited. No one answered, so Mal knocked harder a second time. A few seconds later, Raymond answered. "Hey guys," he said happily. "Thanks for coming, and I hope you brought your appetites," he said as he opened the doors all the way to make it easier for all of them to get through.

Upon entering, all of them became speechless at the sight before them. There was a large rectangular table with more than enough room for all of them. The table had white to tablecloth with nine place settings and a simple centerpiece of mini pumpkins, some fall flowers, and candles.

"Whoa," Carlos whispered.

"What the…?" Mal said in shock.

"I know, Evie really outdid herself," Raymond confirmed.

" _Evie_ did all this?" Audrey asked, not completely believing it. Raymond nodded.

"Happy Thanksgiving everybody," Evie practically sang as she came out from the back area where she was doing some final preparations.

"Thanksgiving?" Mal asked, still in disbelief.

"But it's not until _next_ Thursday," Jay pointed out.

"I know, but…," the blue-haired girl said, trailing off. "I just thought, since we're all going to be separated on that day, that maybe, we could have one with just us before we leave."

She was talking to all of them, but it was lost on no one that she was looking at Mal. On her end, Mal didn't know what to think. She still wasn't a fan of Evie leaving, but she was amazed that her friend had thought of this. Amazed, but not surprised. Evie always seemed to know what to do to make any of them feel better and this…this made the temporary separation feel easier to handle.

"Just how much of typical Thanksgiving dinner did you make?" Doug asked.

"I hope you're all hungry," Evie smiled and motioned for Raymond to follow her to the back. She also waved Ben, Jay, and Carlos to help as well. A moment later, Mal, Audrey, and Jane watched as she and the boys came out with stuffing, potatoes, yams, a casserole, cranberry sauce, and last, but certainly not least, a medium-sized turkey.

"Oh my God," Jane gasped out loud as she watched them place the food on the table. " _You_ made _all_ this? By yourself?"

Evie nodded. "Well, Raymond helped with some of it," she answered.

"I mostly stirred and chopped," Raymond confessed. "The cooking was all her."

Evie blushed at the attention, a rare action for the young blue-nette. Before anyone else could make a bigger deal of what she had done, and not wanting the food to get cold, she ushered everyone into chairs, making sure that Ben was at the table's head. He said the grace and then she had Mal have him carve the turkey.

Once everyone had their plates put together, Ben asked them all to hold off on eating for a second.

"If we're going to do this, we should do it right," he started. He then began looking across the table at the VKs. "Since this is your first Thanksgiving, I think we should do something that we always do at the palace with my family – and I'm fairly certain is done at your new homes. I think we should go around and say one thing we're thankful for."

"Can't we just start eating?" Carlos asked impatiently. He let out a groan when he felt Jane kick him from under the table. "What? I haven't eaten all day," he complained to his girlfriend.

"Waiting a few more minutes won't starve you to death," she chastised him.

"Fine," he relented.

"Thanks, Carlos," Ben chuckled. "I'll start. I'm thankful for knowing that all of you are my friends. When you're in my position, there are times when you don't know whether someone is your friend because of you, or because of the crown. But with all of you, I don't worry about that anymore."

The table was silent for a few seconds after Ben's revelation. No one knew who should go next, but Mal figured maybe she should, to keep things from being quiet for too long.

"I guess we should just go down the line," Mal started as she cleared her throat. "Um…I guess I'm kind of thankful for the same thing – almost. Back on the Isle, you find a crew or you don't last very long, but you always remind yourself not to get too close because you know that once something better comes along, they'll probably ditch you for it. But me, Evie, Jay, and Carlos all found something better, and…and we stayed friends. We're actually closer now," she said, trying not to cry at the end.

All eyes went to Jay who was seated next to Mal.

"I'm just glad that I finally feel like I finally fit in somewhere that I don't have to steal to survive," he said. Everyone looked at him, waiting for more. "What? I like to keep things simple," he grinned.

There were a few groans, some laughs and chuckles, even an eye roll from Evie, but everyone accepted the submitted response.

"I guess that makes me next then," Audrey said. She stayed quiet for a second, gathering her thoughts. "Thanks for putting up with me, all of you," she began. "I know I wasn't the easiest person to get along with – or be around – but, you all kept me around and I just wanted to say thank you for that."

Jay put his arm around her and pulled her into him. He kissed her on the head and she leaned into him, choosing to stay there until everyone was done.

"Carlos, you're up," Evie told him.

"Uh," he stuttered, looking around the table. He didn't know that this might happen, and therefore had no clue what to say. "Can we just skip me?"

There was a chorus of no's and "you're not getting out of this". He felt Jane grab his hand and give it a light squeeze. "You'll be okay," she told him because she knew where his nervousness was coming from.

Mal, Evie, and Audrey looked at each and smiled. They didn't say anything too each other, but their knowing smiles to each other let them know that all three of them were fighting back the urge to go "awww". As cute as all three of them found the two fourteen year olds, they didn't want to embarrass them, especially Carlos who was obviously having some trouble at the moment.

"If I have to say something, then um, I guess I would have to say that, I'm glad I didn't have to do this alone. Being Auradon by myself," he clarified at the end. "I don't think I could've handled it if I'd had to."

There we're a few soft smiles and a proud smile from Jane at her boyfriend. She leaned into him and moved toward his ear. "I told you that you could do it," she whispered and then gave him a kiss on the cheek. This time Mal, Evie, and Audrey didn't hold back their gushing. There was laughter as both teenagers began to blush at the attention.

"Okay, it's your turn now, babe," Carlos told her cheekily.

Jane looked around the table and then took a deep breath. "I…I didn't really have a lot of friends. I mean, I had some, but I always felt like I didn't really belong with them. Now…now I know that I have people who make me feel like they're not just keeping me around because…well, it's just nice to have friends."

"Ray, hurry it up before things get any sappier," Jay demanded.

"You need to get more in touch with your feelings," Audrey told him. Jay waved her off gently.

"Considering that this place kind scared me when I first got here, I'm kind of grateful that I had Evie to keep me from getting lost, and from looking stupid," he said in a moment of light-hearted self-deprecation. The group started laughing, feeling the mood lighten just a little.

"Almost done," Mal said. "Doug, you're up."

"At the risk of sounding like Ray, I'm thankful for the same thing – her," Doug said with a warm, heartfelt glance at his girlfriend. Evie smiled back, already feeling her eyes begin to water. "I won't lie, when you guys first got here, I was a little nervous about you all. Then I met Evie, and spent time with her, and found out how smart, and sensitive, and warm she is and I started thinking that maybe where you all are from isn't who you are. Thank you, Evie."

Evie was in full blown tears after listening to her boyfriend. He handed her a napkin to use a tissue. She sobbed a thank you and then dabbed away her tears before kissing him.

"Do you want to skip your turn, E?" Mal asked softly. "After all, making the dinner, getting us all here, we'd –" Mal stopped when Evie started shaking her head. Evie took a few deep breaths and wiped away the last of her tears.

"It's okay, I can do it," she said. She took one last deep breath and composed herself as best she could. She then looked over at Mal. "Thank you for becoming my friend…and my sister."

It was a simple statement, but everyone gathered knew that it held so much emotion and memory behind it that no more needed to be said. Mal teared up but was able to hold herself together. She nodded at her friend, the gesture understating the strong bond between the two Isle girls.

After a moment of letting all the things that had been said sink in, the group began eating. As they ate, the conversation started, and soon the laughing began. Eventually, before any of then realized it, the meal had gone from simply a surprise put together to make someone feel less anxiety over being separated to what Evie had called it in Fairy Godmother's office – a family dinner.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: I really wanted to do a second Thanksgiving chapter, but every time I tried, I realized that I couldn't come up with things for the group to be thankful for without it sounding like it was a repeat of the first part. So, I decided to just step into Christmas.

Please enjoy…

* * *

 **It's Beginning to Feel A Lot Like Christmas...**

"What does snow feel like?" Evie asked as she, Mal, and Jane were lounging around Fairy Godmother's house. It was Saturday evening, and the first day after Auradon Prep had let out for Christmas break. The dorms and halls were empty and students were back home, or on their way back home – unless you were Evie and Raymond. Snow White and Florian had had a small matter of state to deal with and decided to fly the two teens home the following Monday. They gave permission to the both of them to spend the weekend with friends so Raymond was with Jay and Carlos over at Coach and Liz's while Evie opted for a girl's weekend with her other sisters.

"Huh?" asked Jane, confused by the question.

"Snow? What's it feel like?" Evie repeated.

Jane looked back at the blue-nette weirdly.

"We don't get snow on the Isle," Mal cleared up for Jane since she knew Jane wouldn't get the source of the question.

"Never?" Jane asked in surprise.

Mal shook her head. "Just overcast skies."

"That's so sad," Jane whimpered.

"It's a prison," Mal and Evie responded in unison.

"Why the sudden interest in snow?" Mal said. "It's not like we got any here right now," she said casting an almost dejected glance out the window where the ground was surprisingly still green.

"That's because we're so close to the coast," Jane told her. "The warm air keeps the snow away until right _around_ Christmas."

"The interest is because unlike here, it's snowing in Snow's kingdom already," Evie answered Mal.

Mal looked to Jane. "They're farther north, its gets colder faster, they get snow earlier."

"So you're going to see the white stuff when you go there?" Mal asked Evie, suddenly realizing what the questions were about.

Jane sat where she was and thought for a moment. "When its falling, it feels like really cold rain," she then answered. Mal and Evie just looked at her like she was speaking gibberish. "What? It is just water – really, really cold water - but still water."

"Somehow I expected a more…magical answer," Evie said glumly.

"Snow isn't magic," Jane told her. "It's just…snow; at least when it's falling. Now once it's on the ground, that's a different story. It's soft, and powdery, and you can have fun in it all day," she said with a playful smile on her face.

"We've heard stories that people throw it at each other," Mal said to the younger half-fairy.

Jane nodded. "Snowballs," she said happily. "Well, at least if you're having a snowball fight."

"You fight in the snow?" Evie said.

"It's not really fighting," Jane told them. "You just do it to have fun. You roll some snow into a ball and throw it at each other. Just make sure none gets inside your clothes and you don't get hit in the back of the head. It makes them both wet, and there's nothing worse that wet clothes or hair when you're outside."

Evie's eyes widened at the sound of wet clothes and hair. "You know what, I'm staying inside," she said nervously.

Jane was mentally slapping herself for not choosing her words better and was about to tell Evie that it sounded worse than she really made it out to be when she heard her mother calling from the front of the house.

"Girls, I'm home."

* * *

"Do we really have to be here?" Jay asked impatiently as he moved through the mall with Liz, Coach, Carlos and the twins. They had just dropped Raymond at airport so he and Evie could fly up to Snow White's kingdom. Right after, Liz insisted that they get to the mall so that the family could get some shopping done, especially Jay and Carlos since she knew that they probably hadn't gotten anybody gifts while they were at school.

"Yes, because since this is your first Christmas here in Auradon, you should do it right, and that means Christmas shopping," Liz smiled as she held the twins hands so they didn't run off toward the play area or worse…the toy store. "Besides, if we can get it done today, we won't have to worry about doing it at the very last minute, in the snow, like a lot of other people will be."

"There's no snow," Carlos pointed out.

"The weatherman says it's gonna hit in the next day or two," Liz corrected him.

"And it's gonna hit hard," Coach added.

Carlos just looked at Liz like something was on his mind.

"What is it sweetie?" she asked him.

"You really expect me to believe that _you_ waited this long to get your Christmas shopping done? Uh-uh," he shook his head.

That boy is a lot more perceptive than he thinks, she thought as she looked at the boy she thought of as her middle son. She smiled as she realized that he was also correct. She'd gotten her shopping done at the beginning of the month. She'd even managed to get Sam to tag along and now all their gifts were wrapped and under the tree.

But she knew Jay and Carlos wouldn't have gotten anyone their gifts. She knew it was a matter of not being able to while at school, but she also knew it was because they weren't accustomed to having to do actual gift shopping.

"Fine, _you_ two need to get gifts," she said to Carlos in mock sarcasm.

"I doubt Mal and Evie are expecting gifts from us," Jay told her.

"Always assume women are expecting a gift, boys," Coach told them. He then cast half guilty, half impatient glance at his wife. "It's safer for you."

Liz smiled sweetly, and victoriously, at her husband. "At the very least, you need to get your girlfriends something," she told them.

Jay chuckled and Carlos groaned. They thought this might happen, and the both of them were dreading it.

"What now?" Liz asked them. "And don't tell me its money, Belle called us to let us know that Ben said all you have to do is send the bill to the palace, they'll take care of it."

"Yeah, but what do you get the girl who can literally get anything herself," Jay joked…mostly.

"We'll think of something," she told him. Jay just shrugged. "What about you, Carlos? Any clue as to what you might want to get Jane?"

"Uh, I got a couple of ideas, but I can't really decide," he said sheepishly.

Liz almost awed at the sound of that. She liked knowing that at least one of her elder boys was embracing the holiday spirit. Plus it gave her an excuse to pry just a little bit about how things were going with his girlfriend. He'd gotten with Jane so close to the end of summer that she hadn't really gotten to talk to him about her. At least Jay gave me the summer to get to know Audrey, she mused.

"Don't worry, like Jay, I'll help you too, sweetie."

* * *

The main family room was filled with sounds of Christmas music and the smells of fresh baked cookies. The massive fireplace that was nestled into the back wall held a bright, roaring fire that was warming the room. Standing a few feet to right, near the corner of the room, stood a twelve foot Christmas tree. Evie, Snow White, Florian, and Raymond were gathered around it, decorating various parts with ornaments colored in vivid reds, blues, yellows, whites, silver, and gold. There were also other, more personal and intimate ornaments that Evie could tell were family heirlooms.

Right now, Evie was standing close to her sister, each one decorating their own part of the tree. She was just finishing up placing some ornaments that looked like Christmas stars amongst the regular looking ornaments and, shocking as they were to her, apples that Snow insisted be hung as well.

"Does this look okay?" she asked out loud.

Snow walked over and took a look at Evie's arrangement. She nodded her head. "You do good work," she complimented. She watched as her little sister beamed from the praise. Snow smiled, but then realized something that she felt needed addressing. "Florian, me and Evie are going to go make some hot chocolate. You and Ray keep decorating the tree – but no letting Raymond put the star on the top until I get back," she said, looking up at her husband who was standing on a step ladder to help him reach the top of the tree. He nodded and Snow led Evie away.

Once in the kitchen, the sisters began getting the ingredients together. Snow hated instant hot chocolate and refused to have it in the castle. Instead, she preferred to make it from scratch, as much work as that was. Evie found it strange at first since on the Isle, most things like chocolate didn't exist. She'd heard about it, and hot chocolate, from listening to the adults on the island as they lamented over the little things they missed since being imprisoned. Her first exposure to chocolate however wasn't until the limo ride over from the Isle when they learned that they were coming to Auradon. Back at school, she never saw how it was made, but she assumed it was probably done the way Snow did it.

"Evie, honey, can I ask you a question?" Snow said cautiously as she stirred the ingredients in the pan. Evie nodded hesitantly. "We've talked a lot about Mom, and how she acted with you growing up, and you said that she never mistreated you physically. But I never asked how treated you…emotionally."

"I don't think I know what you mean," Evie said as she leaned on the counter and watched Snow stir the mixture of cocoa, sugar, water, and salt while waiting for it to begin to boil.

"Well, ever since you got here and started helping us with the decorations to the family room, and other parts of the castle, your bedroom, and now the tree, I've noticed that every time you finish a section, you ask if it looks okay, or if you did it right."

"And that's a problem?" Evie asked, starting to feel a little defensive.

"No…no it is not," Snow said quickly, trying to keep Evie from becoming agitated or going on the defense. "But you are doing it _a lot_. And well, when Mom was sent to the Isle and I was placed with a guardian…I did the same thing. The exact same thing – for months." Evie just looked at Snow, not knowing what to say. "Mom might have turned me into the maid, but she was never physically abusive toward me. But that didn't stop her from always saying that I was never good enough. That everything I did needed to be redone because –"

"She won't have anything less than perfect in her house," Evie finished for her sister. Snow nodded. "She just wanted to make sure that I did my best," Evie said softer than she wanted to. She wanted to sound like she was defending her mother, but hearing Snow reveal that she was told the same thing, and hearing the emotional, almost sad tone to it, made her feel like the wind had gotten taken out of her intentions. She knew that Snow didn't hold any anger toward their mother, but hearing this made Evie realize that not everything was okay with some of Snow's memories.

"Sweetheart, there's encouraging someone to do their best, and then there's…well, there's no gentle way to put this for you. Then there's tearing someone down and masking it behind the argument of "I'm just trying to –"

"Make you the best you, you can be," Evie once again finished, this time her eyes glassed over from her starting to tear up. Snow turned off the burner and walked to her sister. She stood behind her and wrapped her arms around her in a tight – maternal, not sisterly – hug. She brought her face right next to Evie's, her lips by Evie's ear.

"In this home, you don't ever have to ask if what you've done is alright…or if it's good enough…or if _you're_ good enough, understand me?" She felt Evie nod her head slightly. "And this might sound strange, but – I don't expect you to be the best. I only expect you to _try_ your best. Again, do you understand me, Sweetie?"

Evie nodded again, much more noticeably this time. Snow gave her a small, reassuring kiss on the cheek, and almost felt like crying herself as she felt the moisture on Evie's face.

"Thank you," Evie sobbed as the two of them stood there, Evie for once feeling like some of the pressure of the last seventeen years was melting away.

* * *

 _Christmas Eve..._

The palace felt alive with the feeling of Christmas. Ben, Belle, and Adam had opened the castle to the staff and their families, friends, to people who lived in the immediate area, and to the other royal families – though most of them opted to stay in their own kingdoms, and celebrate with their families and traditions. That meant, much to Mal's disappointment, that Evie was not there to celebrate with them. But after the conversation the two of them ad over a heart to heart that Snow and Evie had, Mal was completely fine with it. Sometimes Mal realized that she needed to let Evie expand her own family much in the same way she was expanding her own with Ben and his parents, and with Fairy Godmother and Jane.

Right now she and Ben were making their way away from the castle along one of the paths that led to the grounds. Mal was dressed for her first real winter in a purple knee-length wool coat and a green beanie with matching green gloves. They had made it a few feet when they heard Fairy Godmother call out, "Don't stay out too long, Mal, you're not totally used to this weather yet."

"Yes, Mom," she yelled back, getting a chuckle from Ben and a smile from Fairy Godmother.

"So, I'm guessing calling you 'Mom' is becoming more and more the norm?" Belle asked as she watched her son and his girlfriend walk off.

"She's definitely saying it more on purpose, not just as reflex," Fairy Godmother said, failing at trying not to smile at the thought.

Back on the path, Ben and Mal were casually walking along, Mal's arm looped through Ben's, holding herself close to him while they moved. Despite her apprehension over the cold weather since the Isle never really went past warm and gloomy, she was starting to love the feel of the cold air. The bite of the chilled air made her feel more alive and gave her the added benefit needing to hold herself closer to Ben.

"So how are you liking your first Auradon Christmas?" Ben asked.

"It's pretty fun. Don't get me wrong, I wish Evie was here, but I get that she needs some family time with Snow White. And, the snow is amazing," she answered, gushing at the end.

"I'm glad. I really wanted to you to enjoy it,' he said as he leaned down and planted a kiss on top of her hat covered head.

"Plus, who doesn't like getting presents?" she giggled.

Ben laughed with her. They had opened each other's presents earlier in the evening and he was amazed that she had been able to paint a portrait of him without needing him to hold still for her. And he loved how she looked totally surprised to see the bracelet he got her.

"I just wish Fairy Godmother had let me bring the ones from home to open here," she lamented.

"Not everyone opens their presents on Christmas Eve, some people actually wait until Christmas morning," he told her.

While Ben and Mal were enjoying their walk, Jane and Carlos had snuck off to go on one of the last horse-drawn carriage rides of the evening. It was one of her favorite things to do whenever she came over to the palace every year. Normally they stopped just before midnight so she made sure to get one in early. But this year, she had a boyfriend, and friends, and things that took up so much time that she nearly missed doing it this year.

"So why did we have to sneak over to take this ride?" Carlos asked as he sat in the back of the carriage, Jane curled up next to him, his arm around her.

"Because the guys running the carriages take a little longer on the last rides, and she doesn't like me on those.

"It's because she thinks something's gonna happen to you," Carlos chuckled.

"Yeah, but this time I have my cute, strong boyfriend to protect me," she smiled, leaning in to kiss him. Carlos blushed and squeezed her tighter to him. "And thank you again for the present," she said with another kiss.

"Did I get the right scent?"

"Totally," Jane confirmed. "I love the smell of lavender," she told him.

Carlos smiled. Thank you Liz, he thought.

Back at the castle, Jay and Audrey found themselves in one of the many empty parlors. They were sitting in front of the fireplace, the heat providing a nice contrast from the biting cold and snow outside. The couple decided to stay inside since Jay preferred the heat. Audrey liked to think that his Agrabah heritage made him dislike the cold.

"Are you sure that you liked the present?" Jay asked as he held Audrey who was sitting on top of him, back to front, the two of them looking at the fire as it blazed.

"I love it," she told him, snuggling deeper into him. "Just like I said I did the first ten times you asked."

"I know, but –"

Audrey reached back and up so she could press her finger to his lips. She then held up her right hand so the back of it was facing them, her fingers extended, and looked at the ring on one of her fingers. It was a small ring with a one carat stone that, while certainly looking real, Audrey could tell was not a real diamond that was set into a simple setting with a silver band.

"You wouldn't be the first boy to get me jewelry," she started, her finger still on his lips. "But usually when boys get it, it's because they're trying to impress me. 'Ooh, look at what I can afford'. And I won't say that it didn't used to work sometimes. But it gets old fast. You? You weren't trying to impress me. You just wanted to get me something nice. And that's why I love it."

She finally took her finger off his lips and turned to face him. She looked into his brown eyes and leaned in and kissed him on the lips. "Thank you," she whispered as she broke the kiss, only to lean in and kiss him again. Before they knew it, the two of them were making out, wondering how much time they had before someone came looking for them.

While Jay and Audrey were enjoying their moment alone, Carlos was helping Jane off of the carriage after it had arrived back from their ride. She took his hand and they started walking toward the castle, anxious to get inside for a while to enjoy the warmth after their time outside in the cold air. They weren't speaking, instead just enjoying holding each other's hand after the intimacy of the carriage.

They had almost made it to the castle's steps when Jane felt something cold and wet hit her in the back of the head.

"Hey," she whined as she swatted at the back of her head, trying to rid herself of the feeling of shock that was hitting her. "What gives?"

Suddenly, she and Carlos heard a loud, playfully wicked laugh. They turned their heads left and right until they spotted the source of the laughter.

"Mal," Jane shouted as she saw the girl she now thought of as an older sister standing next to her own boyfriend.

"You were right, J, snow _is_ fun…especially the snowballs," she said, her and Ben breaking out in a fit of giggles.

Jane took a deep breath, bent down, and began to gather up some snow in her hands. "Jane, what are you…?" Carlos asked, trailing off when he realized where this was headed.

Jane was forming the snow she'd gathered into a tight ball as she stood up. "I'm going to return fire," she said with resolve.

"Jane, don't do it," Mal told her. "Don't you dare."

Jane just looked at the older fairy. She then looked over at her boyfriend. "I expect back up," she told him just before she threw the snowball with all her strength. Mal's shriek could be heard over a distance as the cold projectile hit her square in the face.

Rather than yell back however, Mal practically leapt to the ground and began gathering snow of her own. Jane did the same. Within seconds, the two girls were hurling snowball after snowball at each other. Eventually, their boyfriends joined in. Soon the sounds of shrieking, gasping and laughing could be heard as full blown snowball fight broke out.


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: So I was watching an old movie called "Citizen Kane". In it a guy was going around basically trying to figure out what the last words of Citizen Kane meant – what made him tick. I liked that concept and wanted to try that here since Jay just seems like someone who even the people closest to him still need to dig through his layers to really find out what makes him tick. So this was my homage to that film. Obviously Jay won't be dead, but we will get a little insight into him.

Also, there will be a chapter taking place during Valentine's Day, but I want to write the next chapter of Devil's Due before I work on it. That means that the V-day chapter (or chapters, I might split it into two if it gets long enough) will be up in March.

Other than that, please enjoy…

* * *

 **Jay's Birthday**

Liz listened to the ringing of the phone as she sat on the couch, letting the TV drone on in front of her unwatched. It was after dinner and the twins were up in their room finishing their homework. Sam was up his home office, going over his preparations for tomorrow's tourney practice. She had a rare moment to herself and decided that now was as good a time as any to get started on something that had been on her mind for the past week.

"Hey, Liz," Carlos said as he fin ally answered.

"Hey, Sweetie," she replied happily. "How are you? I didn't catch you at a bad time did I?"

"No, I'm good," he told her, but as Liz listened carefully, she could have sworn she heard Carlos whisper to someone.

"Are you sure?" she asked him one more time.

"Totally," Carlos said, his voice sounding a little too sure.

Uh-huh," Liz said on her end. "Listen, I need to ask you for a favor."

"Go ahead."

"Okay, so, I'm assuming that you know that Jay's birthday is coming up, and Sam and I wanted to do something nice for him. But we don't know what?"

"And you want…ideas?" Carlos asked confused.

"Well you two are practically brothers, I'm sure you've got some insights that might help."

Insights…into Jay, there's an easy task, Carlos thought. If anyone kept things close to himself, it was Jay. As much as Carlos knew about him, there was still a lot that he didn't. But luckily, for him and for the purposes of this conversation, this was a subject he knew a little bit about.

"Jay's not really _big_ on birthdays," he told Liz.

"He hates his too?"

"No, no he does not," Carlos corrected her. "He's fine with it. I've just never known him to really celebrate it."

"Ever?" Liz asked, not liking what she was hearing one bit.

"I remember him mentioning that his Dad got him a cake one or twice, but that was it. Jay treated his birthday like any other day – he wouldn't even let me or the girls do anything for him. Not even Mal. You might even be better off asking her, she's been friends with him longer than any of us."

"Alright," Liz said slightly dejected. She was hoping that Carlos would be able to give her the insights that she wanted. But Jay was proving that he was quite the mystery, even after all this time with them.

* * *

Mal walked into the athletic building, feeling slightly out of place since she was on the boy's side. Her combat boots made a noticeable thump against the hallway floor as she walked toward Coach Jenkins' office. She felt her nose practically get assaulted as she walked by the door that led into the boy's locker room and sped up to get away from the smell of sweat and what she was convinced was practice gear that hadn't been washed since the school opened.

The door to Coach's office was open so she lightly knocked. Coach looked up and waved her in. She entered slowly, feeling a little nervous since she'd never been called to this office before. Fairy Godmother's office, sure, plenty of times – even before she went to live with her. But Coach's office was a first.

"Hi, Mal," she heard as she entered and turned to see Coach's wife Liz sitting on the couch in his office, reading a magazine. She felt herself become slightly less nervous at the sight of Coach's wife. It wasn't that she was wary of Coach Jenkins, after all, he was taking care of Jay and Carlos, it was just…whenever she was over at their house to see the boys she dealt more with Liz.

"Hey," Mal said slowly as she sat on one of the chairs in front of Coach's desk.

"Sorry for pulling you out of class so weirdly," Coach started as he leaned back in his chair, "but Liz, or rather, we needed to talk with you about Jay."

"Nothing's wrong is it?" Mal asked suddenly worried.

"No, definitely not," Liz said setting down her magazine. "It's just, well, you probably already know that his birthday is coming up and…"

"He told you he didn't want a party didn't he?" Mal assumed.

"No actually," Coach answered her.

"We haven't even spoken to him about it," Liz told her. "We want to, but Carlos told me pretty much the same thing you just said when I talked to him about it," she added.

Mal nodded.

"He doesn't like celebrating it."

Liz and Coach looked at each other, each one thinking the same thing when they thought back to what Fairy Godmother told them about Mal and her lack of energy over her own birthday.

"I don't mean any disrespect," Coach began, "but is it an Isle thing? Not liking your birthdays?"

"Not really," Mal told him. "I think it has to do with who you were raised by. Some kids like theirs because their parents made an effort at it – like Evie. Others can't really stand it because their parents sucked all the fun from it – like me and Carlos, who actually hates his birthday more than me because at least my mother occasionally said happy birthday. All Cruella did on Carlos' birthday was yell and rant in a day long tirade about the fourteen hours of labor he put her through."

Liz made a mental note to make sure and do something big for that boy.

"And Jay?" Liz asked. "Where does he fall?"

"He was more in the middle," Mal revealed after thinking about it for a second. "His dad would _sometimes_ do something for him. Of course it usually ended badly."

"Badly?" Coach prodded.

"Most people don't know, but Jay has an aunt on the Isle, Jafar's sister. They'd all get together and well…on a good day, Jay would just leave while they argued. On a bad day, he'd have to pull them apart. I'd try and do something for him to at least try and make up for that, but he'd just shut me down and say to leave it alone," Mal explained, a touch of sadness creeping into her voice. "I figured all the drama just spoiled the idea of celebrating."

That poor boy, Liz thought as she listened to the purple-haired girl in front of her.

"Thank you, for coming to talk to us," Liz told Mal as the girl got up. Mal nodded and started heading for the door.

"If it were me trying to do something for Jay, I'd just ask him," Mal said just before she walked out of the office. "The one thing I do know about Jay is that he's really not a fan of surprises – just ask Audrey."

Without another word, Mal leaves the office, leaving just Coach and Liz. The two of them glanced at each other before Coach got up and sat next to his wife. He took her hand in his.

"Not the response you were hoping for?" he asked gently.

Liz shook her head.

"Has Jay ever talked to you about his life back on the Isle?" she inquired.

Coach took a deep breath and thought back to when he first met Jay.

"I remember when I was trying to convince him to join the team. He seemed…apprehensive, almost like the concept was foreign to him outside of whatever it was he, Carlos, and the girls did back on the island. To try and make it relatable, I compared a team to family. You know what he told me?"

Liz looked at him expectantly.

"He said that I did not want to be at his house during family dinners. But the part that concerned me was the way he looked almost afraid when he said it," Coach let his wife know. "And now after talking with Mal, it makes sense why."

* * *

Liz found herself sitting in a small restaurant just off campus. She'd spent the past day trying wrap her head around what she was going to do about Jay and his birthday. She wanted to do something big since he probably wasn't used to a big celebration back on the Isle. But what she was hearing from everyone was telling her the opposite. There was one last person who she felt she should talk to, someone that Jay had seen fit to let his guard down around and let in. Hopefully she could provide some insights into a final decision.

She looked up when she heard the small bell above the restaurant door indicate that someone had entered. She saw a girl looking around and Liz raised her hand to get her attention. The girl walked over and sat across from Liz.

"Hi, Audrey," Liz smiled at her eldest's girlfriend. "How are you sweetie?"

"Hi, Mrs. Jenkins," Audrey greeted back as she hung her purse on the back of her chair. "I'm good."

"Are you hungry?"

"No, Jay and I had lunch a little earlier. Thank you, though," Audrey told her.

I love this girl's manners, Liz thought.

"Audrey, let me get to the point, Jay is what I wanted to talk to you about," Liz started. She saw a look of apprehension flash across Audrey's face. "Something wrong, dear?"

"You're going to ask me to break up with him aren't you?" Audrey asked, her voice somewhere between fear and mortification.

"Break up with…? No, no, I'd never ask that. Why would you think I'd –"

"Because you wouldn't be the first mother who…hates me," Audrey answered. "Belle was nice to me, but I could tell, she wasn't a big fan of me dating Ben. And, I can definitely tell that she likes Mal more than she ever liked me."

Liz reached over and took Audrey's hand in hers.

"And Chad's mother, well…Chad has his less than stellar qualities, but Cinderella just thought I was bad influence and blamed me for anything bad he did when we were together," Audrey said sadly. Her eyes had begun watering as she relayed her information to Liz, though she was able to keep herself from fully crying.

Liz handed the girl a napkin while she got up and moved a chair next to the young girl, wrapping one of her arms around her. Audrey leaned into the embrace, and let Liz comfort her, though she still refused to let herself cry. "Audrey, Sweetie, I'm not going to pretend that I didn't hear things about how you used to act because I did," Liz revealed. She felt Audrey shake just slightly. "But what I do know is that I never met that Audrey. The Audrey I know and adore is a sweet girl that brings out the best in my boy, and who I would never dream about asking her to break up with him."

"Thank you," Audrey said as she rose back up and wiped away a few stray tears. She cleared her throat and took a drink of the water that was already on the table. "Now that we've established that I can keep being Jay's girlfriend, what did you need to ask about him?"

"Well, I've been trying to figure out what to do for him for his birthday, but everyone I talk to keeps telling me that –"

"You're better off _not_ doing something big?" Audrey finished for her. Liz nodded. "I'm not surprised, Jay is…well…he's not a fan of being singled out."

Liz looked at her confused.

"He's was MVP of the tourney team last year, not to mention captain of the R.O.A.R. team for a little bit. Both of those things kind of require him to be singled out," Liz pointed out to Audrey.

"Yeah, but he gave up being captain to Lonnie because it was better for the team. And sure, he got named MVP, but when the team went out to celebrate, he didn't make a big deal out of it, Coach and the team did that."

"So he's starting to put the team before himself?" Liz asked.

Audrey nodded. "Besides, he says he's never been big on being singled out since back on the Isle, he had to steal to survive. You can't be a thief _and_ attract attention at the same time he says."

"He told you that?" Liz asked with a small gleeful smile. Again, Audrey nodded.

"What?" Audrey pressed when she saw Liz's expression.

"He really does like you," Liz said proudly.

* * *

Jay was in his bedroom, trying to wind down after tourney practice. Carlos was out with Jane, so he had the room to himself. He was just watching TV but the show was boring him. He was considering playing a video game, or maybe calling Audrey assuming she was done with cheerleading practice when his phone went off. He looked at the screen and saw that it was Liz and she wanted to video chat.

"Hey, Liz," he said as he saw her face come onto the screen.

"Hi, Jay," she greeted back. She saw the weary expression on his face and became concerned. "You alright, honey? Did I call at a bad time?"

Jay shook his head. "No, it's fine. And I'm good, just tired, Coach worked us harder than usual."

Liz smiled and gave him a small nod.

"Yeah, well, you've got the Lost Boys coming up, and from what Sam tells me, they might be the only team who could give you all competition."

"They wish," Jay scoffed.

"Always the confident one aren't you?" she remarks. Jay shrugged, a small smirk on his face. "Listen, the reason I called is because your birthday is coming up, and –"

"I'm not Mal or Evie, I don't want a party," Jay interrupted her.

"And after talking to your friends, I gathered that. But you should at least do something."

"Like?" he waited.

"I was thinking, Sam and myself, the twins, Carlos, and you, have a family dinner where you let us make a little bit of a big deal out of your birthday. After that, you go out with your friends, do whatever you want – nothing too crazy though," she proposed.

Jay thought about for a second. He'd already had to tell Mal to skip on a massive showing for him. And he had to convince Audrey to not throw some huge party – surprise or any other kind. He really thought he was going to have to probably try the same thing with Liz, so this was a welcomed surprise.

"I guess we can do that," he relented.

Liz smiled on her end. "Okay. I figure next weekend would be good since birthday falls a Thursday. I don't want to interfere with your school week."

"No, please interfere," he joked.

"Nice try," Liz said. "Now get some rest okay." Jay nodded. "Bye."

"Later," he said back, his screen switching back to its home screen.

He laid his head back down and brought his arm up and covered his eyes with it. As much as he figured that Liz was probably hoping to do something big for him, he was glad that she had decided to actually check with him. It was refreshing after all the times on the Isle when he'd get something done as a surprise, only to have it end with him just sitting on some of rocks near the shore of the Isle, watching the lights from Auradon, wishing he could just once see what the place was lie. To see if it really the shining place it was made out to be so he could escape the let downs of becoming another year older. If this went well, maybe he'd consider letting them do something big next year. But he'd rather just have a birthday that didn't end in a brawl that he had to break up and clean up after.

Thanks Liz, he thought.


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: So this update came later than I said it would. Way later. I am sorry for that. Real life has kind of gotten in the way (Parent in hospital), so finding time (and sometimes motivation) to write isn't as easy as I'd like it to be. I'm still writing, in fact I'm still writing the next chapter to this story, but until a certain parent gets out of the hospital (which should be within the next month...hopefully), updates will be slow.

Please enjoy...

* * *

 **Valentine's Day - Part 1**

"So we'll have the area lit by small luminaries spread throughout the setting and –" Ben began.

"The table by the pillars lit by candles, Your Majesty," Ben's assistant, Debra, finished for him. "The palace chefs are requesting a final approval of the menu you have planned as well," she added as she removed a sheet of paper from her padfolio and handed it to him.

"Menu?" they heard a voice say as it entered Ben's office. He and Debra looked toward the door and saw Belle walking in. Debra immediately stood and gave the Queen Mother a curtsy. She smiled at the young woman and motioned for her to retake her seat. Belle took the chair next to Debra and sat across from her son. "Am I to assume this has something to do with plans with Mal?"

"Valentine's Day is only a few days away and I'm just trying to finalize the plans I have for our date," Ben answered his mother.

"I'm sure that she'll appreciate whatever it is you're doing for her that night," Belle said as she leaned over and tried to spy what her son had planned by looking at the notes on Debra's tablet. Debra raised the tablet and looked over at the King, her eyes looking for reassurance. Bless that woman's heart, and her work ethic, Belle thought. Most people would've just let her look over what was being discussed out of deference to her being the former Queen. But Ben had personally chosen this girl after an exhaustive search for a new assistant. And apparently, Belle thought, she was chosen for her ability to _not_ be intimidated by the presence of the King's parents.

Ben nodded to her with a small smile. Debra then handed the tablet over and Belle began reading over the checklist.

"I should inform you that the bridge isn't exactly conducive, or safe, in the low evening light for a woman wearing heels – assuming Mal will be wearing some," she told her son.

"I've already thought of that," Ben remarked with a bright knowing smile. "Fairy Godmother's going to enchant it with a spell that will make it a solid walkway until the morning that way Mal doesn't hurt herself."

"Her idea or yours?" Belle asked.

"Hers. I believe her exact words were, 'no daughter of mine is walking on that wobbly piece of wood and rope'," Ben revealed. The answer elicited a small giggle from Debra and small smile from Belle. Belle loved hearing Fairy Godmother refer to Mal as her daughter. Truth be told, due to all the time spent with her son, even Belle had moments where she treated Mal like a daughter.

"Well it seems like you have everything covered. Can I see the menu you're having prepared?" Belle asked him. He handed his mother the page Debra handed him just before she entered. Belle started looking over and noticed something.

"What do you think?" Ben asked hopefully.

"That unless you want this date to end in the hospital, you might want to rethink the dessert," Belle told him.

Ben looked at her confused as he took back the menu. His eyes scanned down to the dessert are and he looked at what the chef had put down as a suggestion. His eyes went wide and he let out a gasped, "Oh my god."

"Sire?" Debra asked, not knowing what knowledge was suddenly between the two royals.

"The chef has a layered pistachio cake on here for dessert," Ben answered her. Debra looked back, still confused. "Mal is allergic to pistachios," he said with tiny grin at the revelation.

"We figured that out the hard way on New Year's Eve," Belle told Ben's assistant as she remembered the fright that everyone at their party had when Mal started to cough non-stop before beginning to have trouble breathing and her throat began to swell. They'd rushed her to the hospital, not knowing what to tell the paramedic when they asked what happened. The worst thought she, Ben, and Adam had was that someone had tried to poison her, but they pushed those thoughts away. They'd rather believe that Mal had been accepted enough in Auradon that no one would try that.

They breathed a sigh of relief when the doctor treating her finally emerged, informing them that she was stable and in recovery. He also informed them that poisoning was not the issue, as Mal showed all the signs of having anaphylaxis – a severe allergic reaction to something that she probably ate. After a few questions to those who were immediately around her when the attack began, they tested her and discovered her allergy to the nut.

"I'll inform the chefs to change to a different dessert," Debra said taking the list back and making the notation.

"Something with strawberries, please," Ben added. "They're her favorite."

Debra nodded and then excused herself as the final preparations for the King's night out was her reason for being there. She felt it best to leave the King and his mother to talk.

"You don't think I'm not doing too much?" Ben asked his mother once they were alone.

Belle shook her head. "No, I think you're doing just enough. Then again, Mal would love anything as long it comes from you," she reminded her son.

"Thank's Mom."

* * *

"How much longer until we get where we're going? And why won't you tell me where we're going?" Chad asked Doug as he sat in the passenger seat of Doug's car. Doug had asked him to come out and help him with a project he needed to work on. Chad had initially refused, but then Doug promised to talk to Carlos about letting him use his 3D printer every now and then.

"We're almost there, so stop complaining," Doug told him, impatience at having to once again listen to Chad act like a kid on a long road trip. "And honestly, I didn't think you'd come if I told you where we were going."

Chad looked at Doug like he wanted to tell him to turn around. But after a few minutes, Chad saw in the distance where Doug was taking them.

"Is this a castle?" Chad asked as he got out of the car after Doug parked.

"Slightly smaller, but yeah," Doug nodded. "All the kingdoms have these small castles spread out over their territories. They're back from when a king need somewhere to use as a headquarters while fighting a battle or something. Now, they're mostly used by the royalty as places to stay when travelling. Snow White owns this one. She's letting me borrow it for a Valentine's Day dinner with Evie."

"You went to trouble of getting a castle for her for the night?" Doug nodded. "For Evie?"

Chad still found it hard to believe how practically in love with Evie, Doug actually was. Hell, the two of them together was still a bizarre sight for him. It didn't even have anything to do with the fact that she was from the Isle of the Lost and he was from Auradon. It was more the fact that – typically – girls that looked like Evie didn't usually go out with guys like Doug. Guys like himself, definitely, he thought as he remembered the way Evie practically threw herself at him when she first arrived.

But then again, he further mused, Doug was always more confident that most people. And in the case of Evie, that confidence had made him essentially swing for the fences. And, after Evie met his mother after the details of Family Day got back to her, Chad had to constantly hear about what a sweetheart his mother thought she was. How she was so nice, and polite, and smart, and beautiful, and how she was perfect Queen material. She'd never said it, but Chad knew that deep down inside of herself, that his mother often wished that he hadn't acted the way he did and screwed up any chance to get with Evie himself. At least that was the way his father put it when he told him that information.

"Like you've never done a big, grand gesture for a girl?" Doug countered.

"I've never splurged on a castle for date," Chad deadpanned.

"I didn't exactly splurge," Doug pointed out. "Snow wants Evie to have a nice first Valentine's Day here in Auradon, and just told me to use it. But I need help decorating it for that night. Which is why you're here."

Chad just looked at his friend in disbelief. That's why he said I wouldn't come along if I knew what he had planned, Chad thought. Without an answer, Chad pulled his phone from his pocket and began scrolling through the screen.

"What are you doing?"

"Calling my Dad to send a car to come and get me," Chad answered him. "Chad Charming doesn't do…decorating."

"Today you do, especially since you owe me," Doug said just as Chad was about to hit the speed dial for his Dad.

"Owe you?"

"When you lost your one of your many, many other phones, I hacked into it so just in case one of the fifteen girls you were seeing all at once found it, didn't see the text and pics to all the other ones. I'm the reason they didn't tear you limb from limb. So you owe me," Doug explained.

Chad looked at him like he was trying to figure a way out of the situation. But he kept coming up blank.

"Ugh, fine," Chad reluctantly relented.

* * *

Queen Aurora was sitting in her garden. Despite it still being February, it was warm enough that she could sit outside with just a light coat, but still cool enough that she knew she could spend the time alone without any of the staff coming to need something for a little while. She was listening to the birds in singing in the trees, her eyes closed to seal of any distractions to the sounds of the birds melodic tones. She didn't know how long she'd been listening when all of a sudden…

"Mom, can you help me with something?" she heard her daughter's voice.

Aurora opened her eyes and saw Audrey standing by the end of the garden bench she was sitting on. Audrey was bundled under a thick wool coat and matching scarf. On top of her head was a thick toque. Her hands were buried inside of the coat's pockets and she was shifting back and forth where she stood. She tried not to laugh at the sight. For all the grief she gave her boyfriend over Christmas about not wanting go out in the snow, this poor girl can't handle the cold any better, she thought.

"Of course, Sweetheart," Aurora told her, patting the bench right next to her. Audrey scrambled to sit next to her mother. She felt her mother wrap an arm around her and pull her close. Audrey snuggled up to her, feeling the warmth of her mother's body and trying to use it to warm herself up. "Something wrong?"

"No," Audrey answered, sounding unsure. "Well…not really."

"Sounds like something's wrong."

"Nothing's really _wrong_ ," Audrey repeated. "It's just that, Valentine's Day is coming."

"I know, I'm anxious to see what your father has planned."

"That's what bothering me," Audrey said.

"What your father has planned?" Aurora said in confusion.

"No," Audrey corrected quickly. "What I have planned. I want to surprise Jay, but everything I come up with just seems…too much."

"Too much?"

Audrey took a deep breath. "Jay isn't like the other boyfriends I've had."

"I know, that's why I like him," Aurora interrupted without thinking. Audrey raised her head and looked up her mother with without lifting her head. "What? Most of your other boyfriends were pompous little rats. Especially Chad. Honestly, my biggest fear was you two marrying, combining the kingdoms and him ending up King," Aurora said with a shiver.

"Does everyone had Chad?" Audrey asked.

"We're all hoping that this arrogant persona is just a fad and that he does what you've been spectacular at lately – growing up. Personally, I don't see that happening anytime soon."

Audrey smiled at the mention of her growing up. It was nice to know that her parents had noticed all the work she'd doing to not be the shallow, condescending girl she used to be.

"On that note…Jay doesn't have a lot of money. So while I love his gifts during times like this, I wanted to be the one to give something. But everything I come up with just seem to look like I'm flaunting how much money I have."

"Well, you can't hide the fact that you come from money, but you can adapt."

Once again, Audrey looked up her mother in confusion.

"Sweetie, it isn't uncommon for couples to do things that don't actually require money. I mean, Jay has to plan dates without a lot of it doesn't he?" Audrey nodded. "So maybe you need to stop asking yourself what you should do, and ask yourself what would Jay do."

* * *

"Remind me again why I'm the only looking for a dress?" Mal asked as she, Jane, and Evie were in a dress shop in Auradon. "And why can't you just make my dress, E?"

"Because you waited too long to ask me," Evie answered as she sat in the waiting area just outside the dressing rooms with Jane. "With all the other orders I've got, I'll never get a dress for you done in time."

"But I'll bet Jane gets a new dress?" Mal asked sarcastically.

"Actually no," Evie revealed with a confused look to the younger girl.

"What?!" Mal said as she opened the door to the dressing room and stood inside of it. Evie and Jane turned to look at her. She had on a light purple, off the shoulder skater dress with a sweetheart neckline that had both high waist and princess seams to show off Mal's curves. The waist flared out into a skater skirt that ended a few inches above mid-thigh.

"Oh my God, that dress looks so good on you," Evie raved as she looked at her purple-haired best friend.

"It does," Jane agreed. "Although, if Mom comes by to check on you before your date, she's gonna have an issue with how short it is."

Mal waved off the comment. "I'll spell it to be longer at the dorm and then put it back to normal on the drive to wherever Ben's taking me."

"But what about…," Jane started to say, only to be cut off.

"But nothing," Mal said. "What do you mean you're not getting a new dress? Don't you and Carlos have anything planned?"

Jane looked at the two older girls sheepishly as she shook her head.

"Really?" Evie asked, not believing Jane. "Carlos didn't come up with anything?"

"He tried – we both did," she told them. "But then he kept hearing from Ben and Doug what they had planned. And then Audrey told me what she's doing for Jay. And seeing you two getting so excited well….we couldn't come up with anything as big, or as good, so we figured, we shouldn't."

"Aw, Janey, we're sorry," Evie offered. "M, we totally need to do something for those two." Mal nodded.

"No; no you don't," Jane cut in. "Me and Carlos are perfectly fine with not going on some big, grand night out."

"But you two should do something," Mal said.

"And we are," Jane told her. "We're planning on just staying in and having a movie night."

Mal and Evie looked at each other. "We could come up with something pretty quick," Mal told Evie. Evie nodded.

"But you're not going to," Jane said emphatically. "Look, I get it – you want to help. But there's nothing to help. Me and Carlos are fine with just watching movies."

"But, J –," Mal started, only to silenced by Jane raising her finger and shushing her.

"Janey, we –," Evie tried to speak, only to get the same treatment.

"We're fine with movies. There will be no more talk about it. Now you," she pointed at Mal. "Go pay for your too short dress."


	9. Chapter 9

**Valentine's Day**

"Now you're sure you two don't need anything?" Fairy Godmother asked she paused halfway between the couch and the door. She'd stopped in to check on Jane and Carlos on their movie night. She was letting them use one of the dorm hall lounges for their date since, while she did trust them, mostly, she still didn't think being alone in one of their rooms was appropriate.

"We're fine, Mom," Jane told her as she and Carlos looked at her over the couch. They'd been leaning up against each other, when Fairy Godmother walked in carrying some extra snacks for them. She laughed as she saw that despite it being Valentine's Day, they were watching horror movies.

"Now can we please have some privacy?" Jane added as she realized that her mother was stalling.

"Oh, alright," Fairy Godmother relented. "But don't stay up too late. I expect you both back in your own rooms by twelve-thirty."

Jane nodded.

"Yes ma'am," Carlos replied.

Such a sweet boy, Fairy Godmother thought. She spent so much time dreading the idea of her daughter dating, but she was happy to see that Jane had found such a likable young man. And she had to admit to herself that the two of them looked adorable together. Like the pair of lovebirds that they make movies about.

"Okay, enjoy your night, and please…don't…uh…please behave," she said.

"Mom," Jane whined at what was a very awkward instruction since she knew what her mother meant by "behave".

"I'm sorry, I'm a mom, I can't help myself," Fairy Godmother answered quickly and uncomfortably with a raising of her hands. Jane shot her mother a look. "I'm going, I'm going," she finished as she hastily left the room. A second later however, she peeked around the door frame. "Please behave. That is all. Goodnight. Have fun. Again that is all," she said so quickly Carlos and Jane almost didn't make it out.

"That got awkward fast," Carlos said.

"Imagine how awkward it would've gotten if she'd walked in a few seconds earlier and caught us making out," Jane told him.

"Yeah," Carlos let out slowly.

He and Jane had started out watching movies, but little stolen pecks here and there as Jane jumped into him during the scary parts of the movies had turned into a full blown make out session quickly. Eventually the movie played on, unwatched, as they laid across the couch. They didn't know how long they'd been kissing when all of a sudden Jane lifted herself off of him, sniffing the air.

"It's a good thing you smelled her cookies from down the hall," Carlos said thankfully.

"Mom bakes those things with just enough nutmeg to make them stand out so that I know that smell anywhere," she admitted as she recalled the scent of the cookies sending her into a flurry of motion, almost shouting at Carlos to sit up because her Mom was coming. They'd managed to get themselves composed enough – Carlos sitting against the arm of the couch and Jane tucked into him, making sure to grab his arms and place them around her waist – that Fairy Godmother didn't sense anything amiss as she brought in the baked sweets. "But…now that she's gone," Jane said in a flirty voice as she sat on Carlos's lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and smiling playfully at him, "where were we?"

She leaned in and began kissing him, ignoring the movie they'd paused when Fairy Godmother walked in. As they continued to enjoy the moment, Carlos thought back to something he'd overhead Liz say about Jane – it's always the quiet ones.

* * *

"You know when you said that you were bringing me to the Enchanted Lake again, I assumed you planned another picnic like our first date," Mal smiled.

"I thought about it, but figured I should try and do something a little bit different," he said, his glowing smile making Mal feel all loopy inside.

Like he arranged, the exterior of the stone perch they were sitting on was lined with bright white luminaries that provided a soft, gentle glow for their dinner. The table had two small candles illuminating their immediate area. But the part that took Mal's breath away were blue and purple water lanterns floating on the lake water.

"The lanterns are nice," she told him as she looked again at the dancing colors they created on the water's surface as they floated.

"They were Mom's idea actually," Ben revealed as he took a bite of the food they were eating. "She wanted to make sure you enjoyed tonight."

Mal looked off to the lanterns again and smiled. She liked knowing that Belle had helped. It told Mal that Belle was accepting of the relationship between herself and her son. Truth be told, as close as she'd gotten with Fairy Godmother, Mal was also making an attempt to get close to Belle. Fairy Godmother kept reminding her that if she continued to see Ben, that it was important for Ben's parents to like her, especially Belle since Ben was a little closer to her than his father. Mal nearly let out a giggle when she remembered asking what it would mean if Beast didn't like her and Fairy Godmother answered with, "Don't worry about that, he's gruff and acerbic with everybody, even if he likes them."

Mal had to look up the meaning of the second word and thought it described him well.

"You look beautiful tonight," Ben said, breaking Mal out of her reverie.

"Thank you – for the third time you've said that," she grinned.

"I know, but, as much I like how you normally dress –"

"You mean tight leather and denim?" she interrupted him with a small, knowing smirk.

Ben smiled like someone who'd been caught trying to be facetious and nodded. "As much fun as that look is, I like seeing you like this – softer, more…"

"Feminine?"

He gave her a small nod. Mal leaned onto the table, Ben doing the same to keep his gaze on her. She looked at him over the candle, their eyes meeting.

"It's not a look I usually go for because, well…I always feel like it isn't really me. But, I really do like the way you look at me when I wear a dress."

"Well, it helps when you're the most beautiful girl in the world," he complimented, forcing Mal to blush harder than she'd ever blushed before. Suddenly, as she felt the heat on her cheeks staying longer than she was used to she had a single thought, one that she'd tried to hold back from letting creep into her mind. But as their relationship kept going, kept growing, and kept evolving, the thought kept popping up every time Ben did or said something like he'd just done.

 _I hope he marries me._

* * *

The night was clear with not a cloud in the sky. The temperature was a little on the chilly side, but not enough that it meant that the convertible that Jay and Audrey had arrived in needed its top up. The two of them were laying on the grass, enjoying the music of the concert that was taking place in the park that Audrey had brought them to. There were near the back of the crowd, just far enough to still hear the music, but affording themselves enough privacy to feel like it was just the two of them.

"Never would've picked you as a free concert in the park kind of girl," Jay told her as they laid on the blanket, Audrey snuggled up to Jay, her head on his chest. Jay had a momentary feeling of déjà vu as he remembered a dream he had a while back of the two of them laying just like this.

"Well it helps that I have this really hot boyfriend who showed me that you don't need to go all out and spend a lot of money to show a girl a good time – or boy as the case may be," she said as she listened to his heart beating through his clothes.

"Except for the car," he pointed out. He heard Audrey let out a mock gasp and felt her lightly slap his chest.

"I will have you know I borrowed that from Grammy," she retorted. "And besides, it let me wear this totally cute outfit," she smiled. Jay grinned as he remembered looking at her when she picked him up. She was wearing a 1950s inspired pink halter sundress with matching white heels. Her hair had been done a side swept look with a carefully placed flower in it to give her that extra feminine classic look. Combined with what he now knew was her grandmother's 1955 Bel Air, and she looked like she'd stepped out of some vintage car ad.

"And you look great by the way, Foxy."

"Thank you, baby," she said leaning up and giving him a kiss on the lips.

"So what are we doing after the concert?" Jay asked, feeling a little out of step with Audrey having already planned the way the date was going to go, something he was used to doing. For all her efforts to change, some things never would, and Audrey was definitely the type of girl to feel like if her boyfriend was taking her out, then he was the one who was supposed to plan the evening out. Sure, she might let Jay know that maybe she was hoping to do or see something particular, but it was still up to him to make it happen. But for tonight, she had decided that she wanted to be in charge.

"There's a picnic basket in the trunk," Audrey finally answered. "I figured that we could find some place nice and private, and have dinner and then see what happens." Jay looked down at her and just remained silent. "What?" she asked, starting to feel nervous.

"I'm thinking that maybe I should just let you plan out the dates from now on."

"This is a one night deal," she corrected him with a sweet smile. "After all, deep down, I really am an old-fashioned kind of girl."

"Not _that_ old-fashioned," Jay smirked as moved some hair behind her ear, and leaned down to kiss her. As the music of the band played on, the two of them began losing themselves in each other and forgot that anyone else was around.

* * *

"I don't like being blindfolded," Evie whined as she walked slowly, letting Doug lead her.

"I know you don't, but I don't want you ruining the surprise," he told her as he gently pulled her in the direction he wanted.

He'd picked her up at her dorm room a little over forty-five minutes ago, and almost fainted on the spot. He'd asked Evie to wear something a little more on the formal side, but what she decided on forced him to remember how to breathe. Her dress was a dark blue, almost black, satin, A-line sleeveless gown. The top had a V-neckline which was a little more revealing a look than Evie went for. In fact, as the dress reached to the floor his eyes were then drawn to the slit that went almost up to her waist, letting Evie show off one leg, and made his wish he could see the other, he realized the entire dress was a far more mature – sexier was the word that came to mind – look for his girlfriend, but she pulled it off flawlessly. She'd straightened her hair, parting it on the right and letting it fall to her shoulders with soft curls at the ends to complete the look.

Evie smiled softly as she saw Doug look at her with the most loving and awestruck stare. She giggled when he finally caught his breath and was able to speak.

"You look gorgeous."

"Thank you," she said appreciatively. "You don't look to bad yourself," she complimented him as she straightened his bowtie. "So, are we going?" she asked him after a few seconds when he didn't move.

Doug shook his head, shaking off the daze that Evie had put him in. "Going…yeah. We're going," he stammered as he held out his arm. "You are going to love this surprise," he promised as they started walking off.

Now he was finishing leading her to where he needed her. "Are we there?" she asked when they stopped moving.

"Uh-huh," Doug sounded as he moved behind her and began untying the blindfold. "Okay, take a look," he told her as he whisked off the blindfold.

Evie let her eyes open and adjust, and then felt them widen. In front of her was the most amazing sight she had ever seen. They were in a castle's garden. Doug had spread strings of white lights all along the walls making it look like stars were covering them. In the center of the garden was a white gauze canopy over a matching white table and two chairs. There was a trio of floating candles resting on top of a silver tray with rose petals scattered around them in the center of the table. A smaller serving table with covered trays was positioned next to it.

"Oh, my…Doug…oh, my God! It's so beautiful," she gasped as she turned and kissed him.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Evie," he wished her as their lips separated.

Evie nodded, holding back the urge to tear up, not wanting to ruin her makeup. "Where are we?" she asked as she began looking around again.

"Snow's castle," he answered her. "Well…the one she uses when she's here in Auradon," he clarified

"A castle? You brought me to a castle?"

"Well you _are_ a princess," Doug told her as he gently grabbed her waist and pulled her to face him. She draped her arms over his shoulders and looked into his soft green eyes.

"I'm not a _real_ princess," she said glumly, though still smiling.

Doug leaned down and gave her a small kiss. "You're my princess," he said matter-of-factly, like he was simply repeating a known piece of knowledge.

How did I get this lucky, Evie thought as pressed her lips back to his. After a few seconds, they broke apart and Evie looked back into eyes. Doug saw her lips quiver and her brow furrow just slightly like it did every time she was debating what to say next and wanted to pick her words carefully.

"Evie?"

Evie leaned and gave him a quick peck on the lips. "I…I love you," she said softly.

Oh my god, did I just say that, she thought once the words left her lips. On his end, Doug was slightly caught off guard by what he'd just heard. He looked back at her in stunned silence, the seconds ticking by making Evie feel nervous that maybe shouldn't have said anything even though she hadn't really thought about what she said. It was more instinct and gut reaction to what he'd said to her. But then Doug leaned down and gave her a quick kiss.

"I love you, too."

Evie felt her heart start to beat like a drum at a fast pace and her stomach suddenly felt like a million butterflies were inside it. She also felt like she was floating and she half expected to leave the ground and see fireworks going off in the sky. She practically leapt into him and kissed him hard, Doug returning the kiss with equal fervor. This time she didn't let this kiss be broken as quickly as the others and soon the two of them had momentarily forgotten that they still had a dinner to enjoy.

* * *

Carlos and Jane were still making out. They'd taken a few small breaks to rest their lips, have a few snacks, actually watch a bit of some of the movies they brought, and most importantly, get a chance to breathe. But as they always ended up, they eventually went back to kissing each other. Right now, they were laying on the couch, Jane on top of Carlos. They'd lost track of time of how long this session had lasted when the moment was broken by the sound of an alarm beeping.

"Is that your phone?" Jane asked as she lifted herself slightly off her boyfriend.

"Uh…yeah…its 12:01," Carlos answered her.

"Twelve-oh…Mom gave us until twelve-thirty," Jane told him confused, and a little annoyed.

"I know, but…I have a surprise for you," he said, as he started to sit up, gently moving Jane off of him.

Jane took a seat on the couch and watched as Carlos got down on his hands and knees on the floor. She looked over and saw that one of his arms was reaching under the couch. What the…, she thought. "Got it," she heard him utter after a second or two. Carlos then lifted himself off the floor and sat back down on the couch, a medium-sized rectangular box in his hands. "This is for you," he said handing the box over.

Jane looked at the box quizzically. "But I thought we said we _weren't_ going to give each other Valentine's Day gifts," she said holding up the gift.

"We weren't, and I didn't," Carlos told her. Jane held up the box as proof that he was mistaken. "It's after midnight," he informed her, a cocky grin on his face. "It's not Valentine's Day anymore." Jane immediately softened her expression as the realization that he was right. It was now _past_ Valentine's Day, so technically, this wasn't a Valentine's Day gift. "And something tells me you're probably the only girl getting a gift on February fifteenth."

Jane looked at Carlos, not knowing what to say. She then looked at the box, and…

"You're so sweet," she gushed as she began opening the box. When she finally got it open, she saw that it was a small photo album.

"I know it's kind of old school, but Liz thought actual printed pictures were better than digital ones," Carlos told her as Jane opened it, anxious to see what pictures he was talking about.

The first picture she saw was one of her and Carlos the night of the coronation. It was taken after the attack by Maleficent, when everyone was partying and dancing. She was in her blue ruffle dress and he was in his black and white leather jacket. Upon closer inspection she could see that as they were standing next to each other, their hands were grazing, almost like they were trying to hold hands even that night. The next picture was of the two of them at the hospital after Carlos had gotten hurt. He was laying back on the hospital bed, his leg propped up and Jane was next to the bed, holding a cup of water to him so he could drink from the straw. Jane looked at him, wondering how he got this one.

"Liz took it," he informed her.

The next few were taken during little moments. A picture from Ben's party over the summer, a couple from the double date she and Carlos had with Mal and Ben after the whole backyard pool incident. The two of them in their Halloween costumes, one with Mal and Ben in their costumes. There were pictures from their early Thanksgiving, and lots from Christmas and New Year's.

"Oh my God, I love it," she gasped as she leaned over and gave him a tight hug and a kiss. "But now I feel bad that I didn't get you anything."

"I don't need anything," he told her.

He's so sweet, she thought this time. I am so getting him something, she further mused, though with a little disappointment as she saw that looking over her gift had cost them nearly the entire last half hour and she knew her mother would be checking up on them.


	10. Chapter 10

**Carlos' Birthday**

The room was shaking. He could feel himself bouncing up and down and being tossed back and forth on the bed. He felt his hair graze the headboard and immediately his hands went to protect his head. He sat up as quick as he could, his hands pushing himself toward the headboard in an effort to stabilize himself. Once he was pressed against it, he realized it wasn't an earthquake. It was…

"Shawn? Mark? What gives?" Carlos screamed as he saw the twins jumping on his bed.

"Happy Birthday, Carlos," they shouted in unison.

"Mom and Dad…," Shawn started.

"Mom mostly," Mark continued.

"Say you need to come downstairs," Shawn spoke again.

"It's time for breakfast," Mark added, without missing a beat, despite the fact that neither of them had ceased jumping on the bed.

Both boys began to laugh as they finally jumped off the bed and started running downstairs. So that's what that feels like, Carlos thought as he stayed sitting, trying to figure out just what had happened.

"I don't care what Jay says, those two might as well really be Pain and Panic," he said to himself as he forced himself to start getting out of bed. He dragged himself downstairs to where the rest of the family was already halfway done having breakfast.

"Morning," Coach greeted him as he fell into his seat. "And Happy Birthday."

"Thanks," Carlos mumbled, still trying to process being awakened so drastically.

"Not fun when it happens to you, is it?" Jay smiled evilly as he tried to laugh at Carlos's current state.

"How many times have I made them do that to you?" Carlos asked him as he rested his head on his hands, being held up by his elbows on the table.

"Enough times that this doesn't make us even," Jay chuckled. Carlos groaned and closed his eyes, feeling the exhaustion hitting him again. It was Saturday morning, and he and Jay were spending the weekend at home, at Liz's insistence. Normally when they were home on weekends, the boys were allowed to sleep in, but apparently Liz had other plans, as Carlos discovered when he glanced at the clock next to his bed and saw that it was only ten a.m. If I'd known I was gonna be up this early, I wouldn't have stayed up until four playing video games on my handheld, he thought.

"Elbows off the table, Honey," Liz said as she gave Carlos a gentle swat on his shoulder. He opened his eyes and moved his arms. Liz then slid his breakfast in front of him. "Happy Birthday," she smiled, ruffling his hair and leaning down to give him a kiss on the cheek. Carlos looked down at the plate: double chocolate chip pancakes, scrambled eggs covered in a good sized amount of ketchup, bacon that was apparently drizzled with the same syrup as his pancakes and big glass of orange juice.

"Seriously?" he asked, surprised at the plate.

"It's your birthday, why shouldn't you get your favorite breakfast?" Liz grinned.

Carlos smiled as he took a large drink of the juice.

"I don't how you can do that to your eggs and bacon?" Jay cringed.

"Because eggs are bland and bacon and syrup make everything awesome," Carlos replied just before he shoved a forkful of pancakes into his mouth.

"I don't know about that, but you will need your energy today, so eat up," Coach told him. Carlos looked over at him, his eyebrow raised.

"Like we said, it's your birthday, we have plans," Liz smiled as she took a drink of her coffee.

* * *

Liz was in the backyard, trying to set up the tables and quickly realizing that it was more than a one woman job. And there's freaking eight of these, she thought to herself as she finished righting the first table on its legs properly. Plus the table cloths, and the set up for the food and gifts, and place settings, she further pondered. She was telling herself that she should've taken Jay's offer to stay and help instead of insisting that he go with Sam, Carlos, and the twins to that video game expo Carlos wanted to go to when she heard someone walking up to gate.

"Hello?" she heard a soft voice shout out. "Mrs. Jenkins?"

Liz looked up while walking over toward the gate and smiled. Reinforcements had arrived in the form of Fairy Godmother, Mal, and Jane.

"Hi," Liz greeted with a thankful sigh. "I am so happy to see all three of you."

Liz opened the gate and let the three of them in. They all said their hellos while looking into the backyard. "None of the boys decided to help?" Fairy Godmother asked.

"Jay did. I made him go with the Sam and the boys. Really wishing I hadn't done that," she said with a regretful nod.

"Well, we're here now, so what do you need?" Fairy Godmother asked. Liz began directing the three of them with helping to set up the remaining tables. She had Mal and Jane place the table cloths and the simple centerpieces on the tables while she and Fairy Godmother went inside to start some of the food.

"So how does Carlos feel about this party?" Fairy Godmother asked as she set the pot of potatoes to boil.

"He's kind of so-so, mostly because he's never had a good birthday," Liz answered as she molded the meat for the burgers later.

"From what Mal tells me, he's never _had_ a birthday," Fairy Godmother replied.

"She told me too. She also mentioned that his mother actually used to make him feel bad about his birthday."

Fairy Godmother nodded, a sullen look on her face. Liz remembered what Mal had told Sam and herself when she was trying to figure out something for Jay. How she would rant about the pain of being in labor. Jay let her in on more information, saying how he once heard Cruella complain that she had to constantly get up because, as she put it, he was whiny baby. But it was the detail that Evie gave her that broke Liz's heart. Evie revealed to her that the birthday before they came to Auradon, Evie was waiting for Carlos to come out of his house when she heard Cruella yelling at Carlos about what she ever did to be stuck with him, and why she didn't just get rid of him first chance she had. That woman better hope I never get her in a room alone, Liz thought.

"That why Sam and I are making sure that this day feels all about him," Liz told her. "What?" she asked when she saw Fairy Godmother smiling at her.

"I can see why Carlos particularly likes it here," Fairy Godmother said. "Is there anything else you need help with?" she asked to break the tense emotion.

"I still need to pick up his present, but finishing up the prep on the food isn't going to leave me with much time to get it before the boys and everyone else gets here."

"That's not a problem," Fairy Godmother smiled with a raising of her eyebrows. She wiped her hands and went to kitchen door that led out to the backyard. "Girls, can you come in here, please." A few seconds later Mal and Jane came in. "Girls, Mrs. Jenkins and I need to step out, can you do her a favor and finish prepping the food for later?"

Jane nodded.

"You're doing anything that needs to be put together," Mal said to Jane.

"Really, Mal?" Fairy Godmother asked flatly.

"What? You've seen me try to cook, it doesn't end well," Mal replied.

"Relax Mom, I got this," Jane cut in. She learned over and put her arm around Mal's shoulder. "We'll be fine," she added to her mother.

"I'm trusting you two. Please don't burn down her house."

"Mom," both girls complained.

"Sorry. Shall we?" Fairy Godmother said as she and Liz began making their way out.

* * *

The backyard was full of teenagers. There were the usual suspects; Mal, Jay, Evie, Jane, and Ben. Then there were connected additions; Doug, Audrey, Lonnie, Ally, Freddie, and even Chad. After that, it was the people that Carlos had gotten to be friends with outside the usual group; other students from class, the tourney team, and the R.O.A.R. team. All in all, is a sizable group, and a few more than Liz and Coach had estimated. Luckily, Fairy Godmother waived her rule against using magic to make things momentarily easier, and did the favor of waving her wand to add a few table set ups and a little bit more food. While Coach worked the grill, cooking up burgers and hotdogs, Liz was moving around, making sure everyone was enjoying themselves, checking to see if anything needed refilling, and generally making sure that things went off without a hitch.

Carlos and a few others of the group were on the largest table. Mal and Ben were sitting off near the edge of the backyard. Jay and Audrey were seated across from Carlos and Jane. Doug was sitting at the end of the table, temporarily by himself as Evie had insisted on helping Liz and Fairy Godmother with making sure everything was going smoothly.

"You did tell Evie that she didn't need to start helping with the food and drinks and stuff, right?" Jay asked Carlos, though it came out more like a statement.

Carlos nodded. "But you try and talking her out of it."

"Pass," Jay replied.

"Evie's just not a fan of chaos," Doug countered. The others looked at him. "It from her Mom – being taught to cook and clean, and always having to cook and clean. She sees a mess, or something like this, she can't help herself, she's gonna do something about it."

"Chore wheel," Carlos and Jay said simultaneously, once again drawing stares from those at the table.

"Liz has a chore wheel so me, Carlos, and the twins help around the house," Jay clarified.

"Taking out the trash, doing the dishes, sweeping, vacuuming…stuff like that," Carlos added.

"Watch Evie do the same to her kids," Jay finished.

"Sounds like a good idea after we get mar—" Audrey began.

"Don't finish that sentence," Jay cut her off. Audrey immediately looked in his direction, just staring at him, slightly amused. "What?"

"Look at the fear in his eyes," Jane laughed at expression Jay's face. The rest of the table, even Audrey, began to laugh. Jay just shrugged off the momentary awkwardness.

"I'm gonna go get some more food," Jay said as he got up.

"Seriously?" Doug asked. "Marriage?"

Audrey shrugged. "I don't mean it…not really. We're both too young, but I love watching him freak when I bring it up," Audrey giggled.

"You're bad," Jane laughed with a shake of her head.

"I'm just having fun. You're the bad one Little Miss Bibbidi-Bobbidi."

Everyone looked at Jane questioningly. "I have no clue what you're talking about."

Audrey took on a look of feigned shock. "Says the girl who uses magic to pick her clothes in the morning, even though her mother tells her not to. Or who also made the good fairies daughters bald last summer. And do I even need to bring up the sneaking out of our room you do every now and then to meet your boyfriend?"

Jane looked at Audrey wide-eyed. Even Carlos look a little caught. Doug was trying not to smirk.

"Hey, what's going on?" Evie asked as she finally walked up to the table, taking a seat next to Doug and kissing him on the cheek. "Miss me?" she chimed at him.

He nodded. "At least until we started discussing Jane's becoming a bad girl."

Evie looked over at Jane, genuine shock on her face.

"I don't sneak out," Jane finally blurted. "I'm in our room. In bed. Like a good girl."

"Jane," Audrey began, drawing out her friend's name. "You've woken me up a couple of times when you snuck out. I've gotten up and found you gone. And there was time Jay told me about when he saw _Carlos_ sneaking out of their room, followed him, and found you two in the west lawn's gazebo…sitting on his lap…making out."

It didn't seem possible, but Jane's eyes widened even further, and her face seemed to go as pale as Mal's. Carlos just sat there, slack-jawed.

"Janey, such bad behavior – I'm so proud," Evie laughed, a bright smile on her face.

"Uh…um…please don't tell Mom," Jane squeaked.

"I don't need to get grounded today," Carlos said flatly. Everyone started to laugh. That was how Jay saw them when he walked back up, a burger and hotdog filling a paper plate.

"What I miss?"

"Just revealing how these two sneak out at night to meet up and make out," Audrey told him in reference to the two youngest in their group.

Jay laughed. "Don't let Coach and Liz find out. Especially Liz," he told them. "Unless you want her to read you the riot act in front of everybody, Birthday Boy. And then she'll tear me a new one for not telling her."

* * *

The party was over. Everyone had gone home or back to campus save for the main four, along with Doug, Audrey, and Jane and Fairy Godmother. They were helping bring in the leftover food from the barbecue, tear down the tables, and help Carlos bring in the presents he received, which were mostly in the form video games and gift cards from his friends. Belle and Adam had gotten him a new laptop. Fairy Godmother, Mal, and Jane bought the 3D printer he'd been begging for. And Liz and Coach got him a brand new gaming PC, which he couldn't wait to set up and start using. As she was surveying anything that needed doing, Liz moved over toward the sink, siding up next to Jane in order to help her.

"I've got it," Jane told her as she wiped down one of the serving bowls. "And before you think about, Audrey's already outside corralling Jay, Mal, Evie, and the twins with the tables and putting them away for when the rental guy comes to get them in the morning. She said she'll help my mom put away the food when she's done there. So go, sit down, rest, for once today, please," Jane requested sweetly.

"Alright, fine. Apparently, you and Audrey have things under control," Liz conceded with a smile. She went to the refrigerator and grabbed a bottle of water and went into the living room. The boys sure did find themselves some nice girls, she thought as she sat down on the far side of the couch. She looked over and saw Carlos on his tablet on the other end. Whatever he was looking at had him so riveted that he didn't even notice that he wasn't alone anymore. She craned her neck and saw that he was looking at video games online. Probably going to spend all those gift cards on them, she thought.

"Can we talk?"

Carlos' head shot up and he looked around. "Huh…oh, hey, Liz."

Liz just chuckled. "I asked if we can talk?"

Carlos looked at her, cautiously. Then he nodded.

"Did you have fun?"

"Uh, yeah, I did. You and Coach didn't need to go all out with Video Game Con, and the barbecue, you know."

"Yeah we did," she said. Carlos looked at her, both shocked at confused. She slid over to him until she was right next to him. She softly put her arm around his shoulder. "Don't be mad at them, but your friends kind of told me and Sam about what it was like with your Mom back on the island."

Carlos swallowed hard and put the tablet down between himself and the couch. He turned away from Liz and tried not to feel…awkward…sad.

"Hey, look at me," Liz told him gently. Carlos turned, a sheepish, almost blank look on his face. "We just figured, that unlike all your friends, who decided if they wanted anything, you _needed_ it. You need a birthday to be what it's supposed to be – all about you. Not about chores, or hearing about…," she trailed off, finding herself unable to finish her sentence. The thoughts of what her boy went through back with that evil woman to traumatic for even her.

Carlos leaned over, resting his head on her shoulder. "It was nice not hear it for once," he sighed. "Thanks, Mom."

I never get tired of hearing that, Liz thought. Carlos lifted himself off her shoulder and let out a deep breath. "For a second there I thought you found out what me and the guys were talking about earlier."

"What were you talking about?"

Crap, Carlos said inside his head. "Nothing," he said with a shake of his head. "We didn't talk about anything," he reinforced, emphasizing every word way too much.

"Carlos," Liz said, this time in her mom voice.

"Um…uh," Carlos stammered. He then looked toward the kitchen. "What Jane?" he shouted toward it. "Sorry, I should go see what she wants," he said, bolting from the couch.

Oh you are not getting out of this that easy, she thought, not with that reaction. But who would tell me. She then smiled and got up herself. "Audrey, honey."


	11. Chapter 11

Author's Note: So, this is part one of the Mother's Day part of the story. I was going to do one whole chapter with all the VK's different stories. But when I started this section involving Evie and Snow White…well a muse it, and it just went somewhere I didn't plan, but felt was a good place to end up with them. I am going to do another chapter with Mal, and Jay and Carlos. Those hopefully won't each be this long, but they will really show where they've come as far their families are concerned as well.

* * *

 **Mother's Day – Part 1**

Evie was standing next to Raymond's bed. She looked down at her nephew and smiled. He looked so peaceful as he slept. His brown hair was mussed and unkempt. She knew that when it was brushed that she'd at some point hear Snow go after him to cut it since he was keeping it a little longer that she liked. He was breathing rhythmically, but she could see him grin every few seconds. Must be a nice dream, she thought to herself. All in all, she thought her almost fifteen year old nephew looked too sweet to disturb. Well…almost too sweet.

"Raymond," she said as she shook him. He twitched hard enough that he rolled himself over to face the other side of the bed. Evie gave a small nod of resignation and shook him again, harder. "Raymond."

"Ughhh," she heard him groan and bury himself deeper into the bed. Evie took a deep breath and leaned onto the bed so she was able to be closer to his head.

"Raymond, wake up," she said vehemently as she shook him even harder. "Come on, I need you to get up."

"Leave me alone, it's Sunday," he groaned as he pulled the blanket over his head.

"It's Mother's Day, and you're getting up," she told him as she walked around his bed and pulled his curtains open. The morning sunlight streamed in, illuminating the room and, most importantly, Raymond's bed. She then pulled his blanket completely off and toward the foot of the bed. Raymond immediately began moving on the bed as if the sunlight was painful to him. He sat up, his eyes blinking wildly as they adjusted to the brightness of the room.

"What the hell?" he shouted at Evie as he rubbed his eyes and looked at her angrily.

"Good you're up," she smiled cheerfully. "Like I said, it's Mother's Day, and I need you up to help."

"Help?"

Evie nodded. "Yeah, I don't need you to get dressed, but I do need you to get out of bed. Go brush your teeth, anything else you need to do, and meet me in the kitchen," she told him, turning to leave and not giving him the time to argue with her.

"What the hell?" he repeated at her, though if she heard him, she didn't return to his room to say anything. He got up and shut his curtains and got back into bed. A minute later he heard his phone chirp. He groaned, already knowing who it was. He reached for it and read Evie's text.

 _Evie: If ur not down here in 10 mins, im coming back up there and dumping a pitcher of ice water on u_

Damn it, he thought as he began to slowly get out of bed. He knew all too well that she'd do it, mainly because she'd done it before. Ten minutes later, he was shuffling into the kitchen. Evie was busy moving here and there, getting pots and pans and placing them on the stove. He could see food already spread on the counter, waiting to be used.

"Where's the kitchen staff?" he asked.

"Asleep probably," she answered him as she took stock of what she'd laid out. As he watched her looking over everything, he took stock of her. Unlike him, who was still wearing his pajamas and robe, she was already dressed for the day in a dark blue, flowy summer dress with matching heeled wedges. How can she be so chipper this early, he thought. I swear, it's like dealing with a younger version of Mom, he further thought.

"You're gonna cook breakfast?" Raymond perked up. While he was used to the palace's chef's food, he'd be lying if he said that he didn't enjoy when Evie decided that she wanted to cook dinner for the family every now and then. Honestly, he was surprised that her cooking was as good, if not sometimes better, than the palace chef's considering she was a lot younger than he was.

"Yes and no," she told him. "I'm gonna cook breakfast for you, me, and Florian. You," she smiled positively wickedly, "are going to cook your mother's breakfast."

"Say what?" he asked, confused, and a little frightened.

"For the third time this morning, it's –"

"Mother's Day, I heard you. But what do you mean _I'm_ cooking Mom's breakfast?"

"You're her son. It's Mother's Day. You're going to do something nice for her," she answered him.

"But I can't cook," he told her flatly.

"Which is why I will be walking you through it," she reassured him. "You will do fine. I've picked foods that are pretty easy, even for a beginner," she added as she handed him a piece of paper.

He began reading over it. He looked up at her, an eyebrow arched.

"Like I said – easy," she smiled at him. "Let's get started."

A half hour later, Snow and Florian had joined Evie and Raymond in the patio, sitting at a small four person table. Snow was sitting at one side of the table, with Florian and Raymond sitting adjacent to her, and Evie sitting across from her. She had placed trays of food in the center of the table with enough food for Florian, Raymond, and herself. But Snow had a covered tray in front of her that she was anxious to see under. "Can I open it now?" Snow asked once they were all seated.

"Yes," Evie nodded.

Snow pulled off the lid, and gasped at the breakfast in front of her – French toast, a vegetable omelet, bacon, oatmeal, and fresh cut fruit. There was also a cup of coffee waiting just in front of Snow as well. "Oh, Evie, thank you."

"Don't thank me," Evie corrected with a look of pride on her face. "Raymond made it."

"You cooked?" Florian asked his son, both amazed, and not quite believing it.

"Uh…yeah," Raymond answered shyly as he looked at his mother. "Happy Mother's Day," he said.

"Thank you, honey," Snow said to her son, a big shining smile on her face. She waved him over and, once they were leaned in, gave him a hug and kiss on the cheek. "Although, a better gift would be cutting that hair," she told him as she ruffled his hair. Raymond let out a groan at being told that for what seemed like the hundredth time. As she straightened back up, she shot a glance toward Evie, one of appreciation since she knew that this was something that Raymond wouldn't have thought to do on his own. And even if he had, she knew her son's skills in the kitchen, or rather, his lack of skill, and so he would have had to gotten the older teen involved.

"Did you make all the food?" Florian asked as he glanced at his son, a sense of worry in his voice.

"No, while he was making Snow's breakfast, I was making the rest for us," Evie answered her brother-in-law. She saw Florian breathe a small sigh of relief, and nearly laughed at the response.

As the four of them ate, Evie stared occasionally at her sister, and could tell that Snow was enjoying the moment. She was bright, and effervescent. She was glad to be in the company of her family. And Evie was glad to have made that moment happen, especially after having a hand in a far more traumatic moment…

* * *

Evie was sitting at her desk in Snow's private office. Her laptop was open, and she was waiting for the screen to pop up showing that her video call was being answered. She was nervous, but didn't know why. After all, it was just a video call with her mother. She'd done one before. Of course, it also involved everyone else's parents, and it turned into a massive debacle that left them all feeling embarrassed that Fairy Godmother, of all people, had to see it. But this time, it was one on one, so she hoped for a much smoother outcome.

While she was thinking, the screen came to life, and Evie found herself face to face with her mother. "Hello my little Evilette," Evil Queen said.

"Hi, Mom," Evie greeted back, a large smile on her face at seeing her mother. "How are you?"

"I'm well. Well, as much as can be expected around common folk."

"Mother," Evie grinned.

"I know, I know, I need to play nice with them," Evil Queen said, repeating what her daughter used to say to her when she still lived on the Isle and Maleficent had allowed them to start integrating with the rest of the Isle again. "To what reason do I owe this unexpected call?"

"No reason, I just wanted to talk with you."

"And the boy king allowed it?"

"Actually, Snow arranged it for me," Evie revealed to her mother. Evil Queen pursed her lips. "Really Mom?" Evie asked as she recognized her mother's facial expression.

"For you, I'm trying not to bad mouth the little ingrate."

"Mom," Evie gasped.

"Well, I'm not totally wrong. That little terror never appreciated everything I did for her," Evil Queen ranted.

"Mom," Evie chastised her mother.

"What? Has she been saying – again – how _she_ was the victim?" Evil Queen asked her daughter.

"Mom, stop it," Evie implored her mother. Evil Queen saw her daughter letting her eyes drift away and over to something off screen.

"What are you looking at, dear?" Suddenly, a light bulb went off for Evil Queen. She felt her blood run, with restrained glee or with anger she couldn't tell, but she suddenly felt the call become a hundred times more interesting. "She's there isn't she?" she asked her daughter, deciding to go with the restrained glee. Evie looked at her mother nervously. "If you can hear me, don't just stand there, Snow, come say hi to Mommy."

Evie looked over at Snow, who had the same nervous expression. She wanted to shake her head to tell her sister not to get involved. But Snow was not one to scare off easily. She took a breath to muster her nerves and walked over. She stood next to Evie, placing a hand on her shoulder and leaning down to put herself at the same height and into the frame. "Hello, Mother," Snow greeted, trying to sound like her normal chipper self, and hoping her nervousness didn't come through in her tone.

"Snow," Evie Queen said neutrally. "I see you're looking…," Evil Queen looked her over judgmentally, turning her head this way and that. "Like you've put in some effort," she said with a pleasantly fake smile.

"Well I do remember all the ranting you did about make-up, and color coordinating, and proper hair styling," Snow responded with the same pleasantly fake smile.

"Still willing to talk back as well I see," Evil Queen commented.

"Defending myself, actually. But enough about us, this call is about Evie," Snow tried to steer the conversation. "Her birthday's coming up in a few months."

"Yes, my little Evilette is turning 18, Mommy's so proud," Evil Queen actually smiled. "I do hope this time you'll have the day to yourself instead of being made to share it like last year."

"She wasn't _made_ to share it, Mother," Snow told her.

"I wanted to do that for Mal," Evie added.

"I'm sure you did, sweetheart," Evil Queen said to her daughter. She then turned toward Snow. "And you just let her. Why? Are you still angry about those supposed lackluster birthdays you say I forced you to have?"

" _Supposed_? You would give me stale, week old cake and like half a glass of water."

"Better to give the cake to you than throw it in the trash and you needed to wash it down with something. Besides, I didn't know it at the time, but apparently I was saving the effort for planning the good celebrations on my _real_ daughter," Evil Queen replied angrily.

"Mom!" Evie gasped at the insult. She immediately turned toward Snow, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. Snow was still staring at the screen, but Evie could see the glare from it highlighted in the tears that were beginning to fill her sister's eyes. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, are you? You're not going to cry again…Brat?" Evil Queen asked condescendingly.

Snow closed eyes tightly, trying desperately not to let the tears start falling at the sound of what her mother called her everyday instead of her actual name. When she opened them, she could still feel them water, but she was confident that no tears would run down her face. She could also feel them burning from holding them closed so tightly. She looked at her mother, and for once, felt like saying something back, Lord knows she was entitled to it, but then she remembered the girl next to her and decided that it was best if at least she acted like the adult if her mother wasn't going to.

"I've taken up enough time from Evie's call," she said as she turned and pressed her forehead into the side of Evie's head. "I'm okay," she whispered into her sister's ear hoping to keep her from worrying. "Be nice to her," she added, then stood back up straight and began to walk out.

"Snow…?" Evie called after her, starting to stand up.

Snow turned and looked at her sister, holding her hands up in a halting manner. "I'm okay, Sweetheart," she said as normally as she could. She nodded to her to affirm what she'd just said, and then motioned for her to sit back down and walked out once Evie did.

"Well, now that we're alone again, tell me, just what is it like living with _her_?"

Evie wanted to yell at her mother. She wanted to defend her sister from what she just saw. To tell her mother that she had no right to speak to Snow like that, especially after all the strings she pulled to arrange this. That seeing her mother live up to the stories she'd heard about her were heartbreaking for her. But she remembered Snow's instruction to be nice. She almost couldn't understand why she said that. If anything, Snow should've been the one to stand up for herself. But she reasoned that Snow was doing what her mother apparently was incapable of. Remembering that Evie had a somewhat good relationship with their mother, and she didn't want Evie to harm or end that over her. So Evie bit her tongue, and answered her mother's question, doing her damnedest to make the situation as positive as possible.

* * *

"So how did you enjoy today?" Evie asked Snow as the two of them were sitting out in the garden. Snow wanted to watch the river than flowed under the castle, and listen to the sounds of the outdoors as the sun was setting. Usually Florian would be with her, but Evie wanted to be the one talking to her.

"It was nice, thank you," she said with a soft smile. "How did Raymond handle you waking him up so early?"

"I had to threaten to pour ice water on him," Evie revealed matter-of-factly.

"Good call," Snow said as she let out a loud laugh. "But again, thank you for today," she said as she watched the water ripple softly. Evie just looked toward her sister, a slightly caught off guard expression on her face. "Please, my son is a treasure, but he can't cook, so coming up with the idea to make me breakfast is not something that he would do. _You_ on the other hand, well…that idea just screams Evie."

Evie laughed and felt herself blush slightly. "I just wanted to do something nice to make up for how Mom treated you a few weeks ago," she confessed.

"I figured," Snow said, confirming a lingering thought she'd had all day. "You didn't need to, you know. I'm fine, and over it."

"I'm sorry," Evie said suddenly. "For what Mom did. And for letting her make me hate you when I was younger. But she was so…and she kept saying what you…I'm sorry for being like her back then, over you," Evie tried to explain, not able to find the words until the end. She was tearing up, and a tear quickly fell down her face.

Snow looked at her sister surprised. She then scooted over until she was right next to her and put her arm around her, drawing Evie in. She leaned her head onto Evie's, her arm coming up and starting to stroke the younger girl's hair. "What have I told you before? You are not Mom, you are your own kind, beautiful person. And I love you for that. And you don't need to apologize for Mom. I accepted a long time ago, that as much as I do love her, she is always going to have issues with me. That won't change overnight – if at all – and she's not going to hold back just because you're there. So don't blame yourself okay, Evie?"

Evie nodded, already starting to feel better. "You really do still love her?"

"Yeah. My Dad married her pretty quickly after my real mother died, and I was still really, really little. So, she was the only mother I really had. In fact, she never called me her step-daughter, just her daughter. And until she went delusional, she was a pretty good Mom."

"Then she became the _Evil Queen_ ," Evie said absentmindedly. "And that's who raised both of us from that point on, huh?"

Snow nodded. "Look at us, a pair of sisters sharing their Mommy issues," Snow joked, eliciting a small giggle from Evie.

"Well, it is Mother's Day," Evie concurred while bringing her hands up to clasp Snow's as they were still wrapped around her shoulders. "And no mother is perfect."

"No matter how much we love her," Snow said tightening their hug.


End file.
